Longford Town -v- Monaghan United
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After two games on the road Longford Town return to Flancare Park on Saturday evening to take on local rivals Monaghan Utd. Both sides come into the game on the back of some good form; on their recent travels Longford have knocked Galway United out of the cup and had a superb 4-1 win in Limerick last weekend while Mons have gone five games unbeaten and without conceding.
Monaghan had an unexpected break from league action last weekend after their game with Finn Harps was called off due to the inclement weather and Mick Cooke will have his charges ready for a tricky trip to the Midlands.
This will be the third time the sides have met this season; in the opening game Mons came from 3-0 down to claim a 3-3 draw in a cracking game of football. The next meeting was as bad as the first game was good with Mons winning 2-0. That was to be Alan Gough's last game in charge of Longford Town.
Although Longford come into this game on the back of two good results manager Gareth Cronin is well aware of the threat that Monaghan posses: "I saw clips of Monaghan against Pat's in the cup, they looked very good. I know a few of the players, I had a few of the players. I'm under no illusions that they'll be a threat and they'll be difficult for us to overcome. But if we keep ourselves solid we'll do well."
Since he took over at the club Cronin has always stressed that moving up the table was the aim for him. He singled out the run of games against Limerick, Monaghan United, Finn Harps and Kildare County as of vital importance: "They are the bread and butter. First we can guarantee our safety in the league in those four games, if we can win them. That's the aim. We have to keep going."
He added: "After UCD game at home we've gone very solid and very determined not to lose games. We ran Shels close and then we beat Galway and Limerick. We just have to keep going and try and beat Monaghan and Finn Harps. I want us to get into the 20s in terms of points and push on from there."
Like his Monaghan counterpart Cronin will have a full squad to pick from for the game with Ray Kenny and Brian McCarthy both returning from suspension.
Kick-off at Flancare Park is at 7.30.
Extratime prediction: It's going to be an interesting one. Town have scored five goals in their last two games while Mons have a mean defensive record. A score draw looks likely but wouldn't be surprised if the home side nick the win.
Monaghan had an unexpected break from league action last weekend after their game with Finn Harps was called off due to the inclement weather and Mick Cooke will have his charges ready for a tricky trip to the Midlands.
This will be the third time the sides have met this season; in the opening game Mons came from 3-0 down to claim a 3-3 draw in a cracking game of football. The next meeting was as bad as the first game was good with Mons winning 2-0. That was to be Alan Gough's last game in charge of Longford Town.
Although Longford come into this game on the back of two good results manager Gareth Cronin is well aware of the threat that Monaghan posses: "I saw clips of Monaghan against Pat's in the cup, they looked very good. I know a few of the players, I had a few of the players. I'm under no illusions that they'll be a threat and they'll be difficult for us to overcome. But if we keep ourselves solid we'll do well."
Since he took over at the club Cronin has always stressed that moving up the table was the aim for him. He singled out the run of games against Limerick, Monaghan United, Finn Harps and Kildare County as of vital importance: "They are the bread and butter. First we can guarantee our safety in the league in those four games, if we can win them. That's the aim. We have to keep going."
He added: "After UCD game at home we've gone very solid and very determined not to lose games. We ran Shels close and then we beat Galway and Limerick. We just have to keep going and try and beat Monaghan and Finn Harps. I want us to get into the 20s in terms of points and push on from there."
Like his Monaghan counterpart Cronin will have a full squad to pick from for the game with Ray Kenny and Brian McCarthy both returning from suspension.
Kick-off at Flancare Park is at 7.30.
Extratime prediction: It's going to be an interesting one. Town have scored five goals in their last two games while Mons have a mean defensive record. A score draw looks likely but wouldn't be surprised if the home side nick the win.
