President’s Cup Preview: Shamrock Rovers -v- St. Patrick’s Athletic

SHAMROCK ROVERS 

The Hoops are seeking their first President’s Cup triumph when they face St. Patrick’s Athletic in Tallaght Stadium on Friday evening (kick off 8pm).

This is the third season in a row they have earned a place in this game – back in 2020 the final against Dundalk scheduled for Oriel Park fell foul of the weather and last year the Hoops lost 4-3 on penalties to the Lilywhites after the game ended 1-1 after 90 minutes.

"It's a great game to have before the season kicks off,” said Hoops Head Coach Stephen Bradley speaking to shamrockrovers.ie about Friday’s match. “It gives us a chance to go and win a trophy, which is always something you want to do. So, it's an important game.

"We're all looking forward to playing in front of our fans in Tallaght. Pre-season is pre-season, and a lot of the games have been behind closed doors, so it's going to be really good to be back in front of our supporters at Tallaght."

Bradley described himself as “really happy” with his squad’s pre-season. The Hoops began with a 1-0 away win in Limerick over Fairview Rangers 1-0 back in mid-January.

Over the subsequent three Saturdays, they played double friendlies – losing 3-2 to Bray, drawing 1-1 with Longford and winning three matches 3-0 (against Treaty United, Wexford and Galway United), along with a 1-0 win over Bray.

“I think we've worked really hard for the last number of weeks and the games have gone well,” said Bradley. “We've come through them with only knocks and bumps which is always a positive in pre-season. So, we're really happy and ready to go now."

Bradley has brought in just two new players for the 2022 season as they seek their 20^th league title and he has held onto all the players they were keen to keep in the squad (bar Joey O’Brien who is a regretted but understandable loss to Damien Duff’s coaching team at Shelbourne).

"We're really happy with Jack (Byrne) and Andy (Lyons), adding to what we already have, and it shows that we're happy with the group as a whole. We like how competitive the squad is and we feel it's strong across the board."

Pat’s are expected to challenge the Hoops – along with a much strengthened Derry City side – in the title race. “I think they'll definitely expect to be competing to win the league with the players they've brought in,” said Bradley. “They've added quite a few and I'm sure they'll see themselves as title contenders."

Stephen Bradley: ‘Brexit has given us this opportunity to really focus and put plans in place to develop our players’ https://t.co/DYKqoHOc6Wpic.twitter.com/b5D1GbALB7

— Extratime.com (@ExtratimeNews) February 7, 2022

ST. PATRICK’S ATHLETIC

Having played in the first two President’s Cup finals – winning 1-0 against Sligo Rovers (thanks to a Keith Fahey goal) and losing 2-1 to Dundalk – the Saints make a return for the curtain raiser of the League of Ireland season for the first time in seven years.

The Athletic ended up runners up to Shamrock Rovers last season – finishing 16 points behind the champions – and earned their spot in Friday’s game after their dramatic penalty shoot-out victory over Bohemians in the FAI Cup Final.

Close to 1,500 Saints supporters are expected to travel to Tallaght for the fixture, Tim Clancy’s first competitive outing as the new boss in Inchicore.

"We are looking forward to the game in front of a good crowd in Tallaght,” said Clancy speaking to his club's media team. “You can't beat competitive games and this one sees the FAI Cup winners against the League winners, there will be plenty of quality on show from both teams.

“We'll have a big away crowd in Tallaght and the lads can't wait to play in front of the St Pat's fans again in a Dublin derby. 

“We've brought in nine new signings and also secured a number of key players on new contracts across a busy off-season, while others were under contract already.

"A number of younger players who have come through the Academy are also in the squad and we've been happy with what the squad has shown in pre-season.

“We want to progress on the brilliant season St Pat's had last year and that begins with tomorrow's game."

MATCH STATS
May 2018 is the last time St. Pat’s beat Rovers and the Athletic haven’t won in Tallaght since a 3-1 win in the League Cup in August 2016 thanks to goals from Darren Dennehy, Jamie McGrath and Christy Fagan. The Hoops beat Pat’s three times in the league last year (twice thanks to injury time goals), along with a 1-1 draw in the first league game of the 2021 season.

Matty Smith led the league goalscoring charts for St. Pat’s last season with 11 goals – he has joined Derry City for this upcoming campaign. Rovers' Danny Mandriou scored four more and was second in the overall league goalscoring charts five behind capocannoniere Georgie Kelly.

Saints new signing Eoin Doyle spent three seasons at Shamrock Rovers making his debut for the Hoops in 2007 – he played 42 league games for Rovers scoring five goals (six goals in 47 competitive matches).

PREDICTION

1-1 after normal time (Pat's to win on penalties)

Shamrock Rovers 

Injured: Andy Lyons, Aaron Greene

Doubtful: None

Suspended: None

St. Patrick’s Athletic

Injured: Paddy Barrett, Ronan Coughlan 

U17 international duty: Sam Curtis, Adam Murphy

Doubtful: None

Suspended: None

Sligo Rovers pledge to refuse gambling sponsorships https://t.co/QtebSweZzRpic.twitter.com/nB9W7Z78nI

— Extratime.com (@ExtratimeNews) February 10, 2022