League Preview: Dundalk -v- Sligo Rovers

DUNDALK FC

Dundalk face Sligo Rovers at Oriel Park on Saturday evening as they begin a fixture marathon which will see them play seven league games in 20 days.

The Lilywhites continue to fight on all fronts following Tuesday night’s FAI Cup semi-final win over Derry City. Goals from the irrepressible Ciaran Kilduff and Ronan Finn fired Stephen Kenny’s men into a second consecutive FAI Cup final meeting with Cork City.

The visit of the Bit O’Red offers Dundalk the chance to maintain their four-point buffer over Cork City ahead of their meeting with the Rebels on Tuesday evening. As a result, tomorrow night’s game is of added significance seeing as six-points from their next two games could affectively secure their third league crown on the trot.

In recent times Dundalk have enjoyed a large amount of success against the Westerners. Sligo have won only once at Oriel Park since the Kenny era began in County Louth and that victory came in March, 2013.

Narrow victories have been a trend on Dundalk’s fixture calendar this season. On several occasions the Lilywhites have come out on the right side on single-goal scorelines with this being key to them remaining firmly rooted at the summit of the table.

Two such examples of them coming out on the favourable side of tight games have actually been against Dave Robertson’s Sligo Rovers. Dundalk have defeated the Bit O’Red by the odd goal twice this campaign, the most recent of which came on September 6^th. David McMillan’s 19^th goal of the season proved to be the winner.

Ahead of Sligo’s visit to the Carrick Road on Saturday, Dundalk manager Stephen Kenny spoke with dundalkfc.com:

Kenny said: “It’s an important game for us on Saturday night against Sligo Rovers. It’s a big motivation for us to win the game and keep our good run going. We are playing well at home and we are back at Oriel Park again. We want a good performance at home to Sligo.

“The players have been brilliant every week this season and they have shown a great attitude. We need to show that again tomorrow against Sligo to win the game.”

SLIGO ROVERS

Dundalk fixture list hasn’t been the only one to suffer from the Lilywhites’ unique European exploits with Sligo Rovers’ last four games having been altered to suit the hectic schedule of the champions.

Their re-fixture with the Ballybofey men was played on Tuesday last. The game ended 0-0 with veteran Raffaele Cretaro blazing a 90^th minute penalty off-target to push them a point ahead of Bray Wanderers and the rest of the chasing pack in fifth place.

Fifth place would represent a good finish for Dave Robertson in his first season in charge of the Bit O’Red. Their early season struggles pointed towards another season of slogging against the drop having endured two-seasons of turmoil in 2014 and 2015, in particular.

However, a mid-season revival which saw them pick up 30 points from 15 games catapulted the 2012 league champions into the top-half. All of this is even more impressive when you consider that the majority of this season’s squad are in their first-season.

Some of Robertson’s foreign recruits have been really impressive, something which the former Peterborough United manager deserves a huge amount of credit for.

The addition of Achille Campion during the summer brought a physicality in offensive areas that the Bit O’Red lacked in the early part of the campaign. The Frenchman has netted three goals in nine appearances since arriving in August.

Robertson has been speaking about the confidence that he now feels his team have following their season of “consolidation.”

The Englishman told sligorovers.com: “There is confidence in our team going into any game against any team. Dundalk we do know are a very good side. I listened to Stephen Kenny on the radio the other night talking about the horrendous run of games they have playing eight times in 20 days. I feel for him, we experienced something similar earlier in the year.

“There has also been frustration as our last four fixtures have been re-scheduled to accommodate Dundalk. They are victims of their own success in a way but they have got the finances to cope with it.”

Referee: Ben Connolly

MATCH FACTS

The hasn’t been a goalless draw between the sides in the Premier Division in 25 years.

Sligo’s last win over the Lilywhites came in the 2014 Setanta Cup Final at Tallaght Stadium. They haven’t won in ten games versus Dundalk since.

Dundalk players Gary Rogers, Darren Meenan, Alan Keane Daryl Horgan and David McMillan will all be facing their former club on Saturday night.

MATCH BETTING

Dundalk FC 1/4; Draw 4/1; Sligo Rovers 10/1.

PREDICTION

Dundalk FC 2-0 Sligo Rovers

Dundalk FC

Injured: Dean Shiels (elbow), Patrick McEleney (hip)

Doubtful: None

Suspended: None

Sligo Rovers

Injured: Micheal Schlingermann (foot)

Doubtful: None

Suspended: None