Kildare County vs. Dundalk FC

Dundalk’s destiny will finally be decided this weekend when, for the first time in over 13 years, the Lilywhites have a league crown to play for on the last day of a season as they go in search of the League of Ireland First Division trophy against Kildare County at Station Road on Saturday evening (kick-off 7.45pm). If the club are to end a seven-season sentence in hell, however, they will need a favour from Limerick 37, who simultaneously travel to current leaders Shelbourne.

Should Shels win, Dundalk will face an eighth straight campaign in the First Division. If Shels draw, a win for the Louth men would hand them the title. If Limerick can snatch a second win at Tolka Park this year, then a draw in Kildare would suffice for the Lilywhites, who would claim promotion on goal difference. It’s all very simple. Or, perhaps, not, in Dundalk’s case. They can, however, take heart from the last time they entered an identical equation, in the Premier Division back in 1995.

Ironically under Dermot Keely’s guidance, Dundalk lay second prior to kick-off, a point behind Derry City and level with third-placed Shels. Derry’s failure to win in Athlone meant only Shels could deny Dundalk, who won at home to Galway. However, at Tolka Park, the Reds could only scrape an injury-time draw at home to Saint Patrick’s Athletic. A similar result this week is, probably, more important to the Louth club as they strive to return to the top flight for the first time since their relegation in March 2002.

However, firstly, like back then, Dundalk must concentrate on their own game and take victory from a recently revitalised Kildare side. “It’s going to be another tough game,” John Gill admits to dundalkfc.com. “Tony Cousins has come in and he’ll have them organised and hard to break down. They had a good draw up in Monaghan and last week was a great result for them in Limerick. We can’t influence results anywhere else. We’ve just got to focus on our own task. If we win in Kildare and it’s not good enough, then so be it.”

Last Thursday, Dundalk bounced back from their defeat against Limerick the previous week as they romped to a 7-0 win at home to Athlone Town. During that, incidentally, striker Robbie Farrell netted his seventh goal in seven appearances after finding none in his first 15 outings for the club. That was also the side’s eighth win in ten games at Oriel Park. However, they have won just once on the road in the past three-and-a-half months. That, though, came on their last trip, when they inflicted a first home defeat in fourteen months on Waterford United; Paul Smyth grabbing the solitary goal of the game with a late, late strike.

Kildare are the only remaining team in the league that Dundalk have a 100% record against this term. However, they have improved in recent weeks under new boss, ex-Lilywhite Tony Cousins, and have put together a two-match unbeaten run for the first time since August, having lost their previous six games on the trot. A fortnight ago, they were unlucky to take just a point in a 3-3 draw in Monaghan, while last week, they recorded a superb 2-1 win at in-form Limerick. Here, they will be looking to stretch that to three outings without defeat, a sequence which they have not achieved since May 2007, when a seven-match unbeaten run came to an end.

The last time these sides met, at Oriel in September, first club goals for Ben Whelehan, Dessie Baker (2) and Robbie Farrell gave Dundalk an in the end comfortable 4-1 victory after Kildare had threatened to derail the hosts early on. Prior to that, in early July, Jamie Duffy and Paul Crowley both scored second-half goals to give the Lilywhites a first win at Station Road in 21 months (October 2006). In May, meanwhile, Tiarnán Mulvenna, David Cassidy, Jamie Duffy (2), Davie O’Connor and Paul Marney all netted as Dundalk strolled to a 6-0 home victory.

Team News: Dundalk captain Aidan Lynch is rated as “touch and go” in his race to be fit for the trip to Kildare. Midfielder and overall top scorer Paul Crowley, though, is fully expected to make it after he withdrew through injury in the final minutes of last week’s win over Athlone. Striker Dessie Baker is still struggling with a groin problem and is likely to miss out again. Fellow forward Robbie Martin, meanwhile, went for surgery on his back injury last Monday and is currently recuperating. He expects to be back in training in around two months.