Rico, are you reading?
Credit: Extratime Team (ETPhotos)
Due to some work commitments, training and the fact that my 10 month old son doesn’t sleep (ever), I was unable to write my column last week. Thankfully, I have had a less hectic week and can catch up now.
We got back to winning ways last Friday week against UCD. The Students made it tough for us but we managed to pick up three points and put the disappointment of Tallaght behind us. I want to give Martin Russell’s young team a quick mention before I move on to this week.
The brand of football the ex-Pats legend has his side playing is probably the best I have seen in Ireland in some time. With the structure and facilities available in Belfield, along with a little more experience over the next couple of seasons, UCD could be a real force in Irish football. Other clubs could learn a lot from their youth structure.
European football is on the mind of everyone involved in the League of Ireland at the moment. For the players playing in Europe, it is one of the most exciting times of your career testing yourself against Europe’s best and for those not involved, you look on with envy, hoping next season, that will be you. It was a mixed bag of results during the first legs but hopefully two if not three of the teams will go through to the next round this week.
With that in mind, we made the short trip to Oriel Park on Sunday. Even though Dundalk were at home, they had a long trip back from Bulgaria after a disappointing result in the Europa league and we were hoping to take advantage of their much publicised fixture congestion. A weird statistic I heard before the game was, Pats haven’t conceded a goal against Dundalk in 12 years, and we were hoping to keep this record intact.
Dave Mulcahy turned out to be our unlikely hero with two headed goals inside the first 20 minutes. With Dave not being used to scoring regularly, he got a little carried away and nearly knocked Derek Pender out during his celebration. Thankfully Derek was OK and he continued on. It was a well deserved lead going into half time and we could have had one or two more on another day.
The second half never really got going. When Connor Kenna scored our third goal with a great header, the game was dead. Over the last few years, St. Pats have struggled in the second half of the season and it is something Pete has spoken to us about. In the five games we have played since we have come back from the break, we have won three, draw one and lost one, which is decent form. If we can keep that up till the last round of games we could be in a great position for a European spot at the end of the season. .
It was reported during the week that Ian Foster was complaining about fixture congestion during their Europa League campaign. Having been involved in Europe over the last few years, I am aware how difficult it can be to sustain a league challenge whilst flying around Europe. Having said that, it is the same for all teams in Europe this year as well as all the team over the past number of years. If Dundalk were asked at the start of the season, if they wanted to drop out of Europe and concentrate on the league, I know what their answer would have been.
Hopefully fixture congestion will be a problem we will have to contend with next season.
On Friday, Damien Richardson will announce the Airtricity League XI which will face Manchester United for the opening of the Aviva Stadium. Even though the game means nothing, every player in the league would love to be involved in the game. I was lucky enough to see the stadium last week and it is on a par with any of the great arenas around Europe. I have heard Damien is a regular visitor to the site, so I better mention I feel as fit as ever!
Although, if I had a choice between playing against United or playing in the FAI Cup Final at the end of the season in the Aviva, the later would definitely be my choice. Having played in one FAI Cup final for Drogheda in Landsdowne Road, it would be my dream to play in the revamped stadium with Pats.
With the form we have shown this season, I would be disappointed if a few of my team mates were not involved. Both Shane Guthrie and Connor Kenna have been magnificent this year and either deserves a place in the squad. Other than the two lads it is very hard to single out other players but hopefully someone from the Pats dressing room will take part. We will wait and see, its over to you Rico.
We got back to winning ways last Friday week against UCD. The Students made it tough for us but we managed to pick up three points and put the disappointment of Tallaght behind us. I want to give Martin Russell’s young team a quick mention before I move on to this week.
The brand of football the ex-Pats legend has his side playing is probably the best I have seen in Ireland in some time. With the structure and facilities available in Belfield, along with a little more experience over the next couple of seasons, UCD could be a real force in Irish football. Other clubs could learn a lot from their youth structure.
European football is on the mind of everyone involved in the League of Ireland at the moment. For the players playing in Europe, it is one of the most exciting times of your career testing yourself against Europe’s best and for those not involved, you look on with envy, hoping next season, that will be you. It was a mixed bag of results during the first legs but hopefully two if not three of the teams will go through to the next round this week.
With that in mind, we made the short trip to Oriel Park on Sunday. Even though Dundalk were at home, they had a long trip back from Bulgaria after a disappointing result in the Europa league and we were hoping to take advantage of their much publicised fixture congestion. A weird statistic I heard before the game was, Pats haven’t conceded a goal against Dundalk in 12 years, and we were hoping to keep this record intact.
Dave Mulcahy turned out to be our unlikely hero with two headed goals inside the first 20 minutes. With Dave not being used to scoring regularly, he got a little carried away and nearly knocked Derek Pender out during his celebration. Thankfully Derek was OK and he continued on. It was a well deserved lead going into half time and we could have had one or two more on another day.
The second half never really got going. When Connor Kenna scored our third goal with a great header, the game was dead. Over the last few years, St. Pats have struggled in the second half of the season and it is something Pete has spoken to us about. In the five games we have played since we have come back from the break, we have won three, draw one and lost one, which is decent form. If we can keep that up till the last round of games we could be in a great position for a European spot at the end of the season. .
It was reported during the week that Ian Foster was complaining about fixture congestion during their Europa League campaign. Having been involved in Europe over the last few years, I am aware how difficult it can be to sustain a league challenge whilst flying around Europe. Having said that, it is the same for all teams in Europe this year as well as all the team over the past number of years. If Dundalk were asked at the start of the season, if they wanted to drop out of Europe and concentrate on the league, I know what their answer would have been.
Hopefully fixture congestion will be a problem we will have to contend with next season.
On Friday, Damien Richardson will announce the Airtricity League XI which will face Manchester United for the opening of the Aviva Stadium. Even though the game means nothing, every player in the league would love to be involved in the game. I was lucky enough to see the stadium last week and it is on a par with any of the great arenas around Europe. I have heard Damien is a regular visitor to the site, so I better mention I feel as fit as ever!
Although, if I had a choice between playing against United or playing in the FAI Cup Final at the end of the season in the Aviva, the later would definitely be my choice. Having played in one FAI Cup final for Drogheda in Landsdowne Road, it would be my dream to play in the revamped stadium with Pats.
With the form we have shown this season, I would be disappointed if a few of my team mates were not involved. Both Shane Guthrie and Connor Kenna have been magnificent this year and either deserves a place in the squad. Other than the two lads it is very hard to single out other players but hopefully someone from the Pats dressing room will take part. We will wait and see, its over to you Rico.
About Damian Lynch
Premier Perspective: Damian Lynch is an extratime.ie columnist giving his views on the current state of the league as well as his own personal performance with St. Patricks Athletic. The Saints' skipper will give his … View Full Profile