Preview: Shelbourne vs Dundalk
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Dundalk will be out for revenge this weekend when they travel to title rivals Shelbourne, as the sides do battle in the FAI Ford Cup Third Round at Tolka Park on Friday evening (kick-off 8pm). The eircom League of Ireland First Division’s top two have already met twice this season, with the latest clash, four weeks ago, seeing Shelbourne come out on top thanks to a decision by the linesman which saw Dundalk denied a goal - a costly error that the official has since apologised to the club for.
That unlucky loss saw the Lilywhites enter a dip in form as they followed it up with two scoreless draws against Monaghan United and Longford Town. However, they soon recovered, with a 5-0 trouncing of Wexford Youths added to with a come-from-behind victory over Sporting Fingal at Oriel Park last week. That allowed Dundalk to sit at the summit for a night, however, Shelbourne returned to the top 24 hours later as they made it seven league wins on the spin with a late clincher at home to Wexford.
However, Dundalk manager John Gill is fully confident that his side can now end Shels’ fine run. Speaking to dundalkfc.com, Gill admitted: “I’m happy with the draw. I didn’t want to be travelling down the country. Obviously, I would have liked a home draw, possibly against a non-league team, but that wasn’t to happen. Some people might say it’s a bad draw, but I think it’s a good draw, because going there, we have a chance to rectify the wrongs that we thought were done to us in the match at Oriel.
“We’re playing on a good pitch, against a good team, and one thing is for sure, I won’t have to get the players up for the game - they’ll be fully motivated for it. I think the cup is a competition for the supporters, and I think it’s a great draw for them. It’s the game before the break, I think we’ll bring a crowd down there, and we’re fully capable of going there and beating them.”
Dundalk Team News: The Lilywhites will have goalkeeper Chris Bennion available. The Scot, who received a straight red card against Fingal, will not have to serve his impending one-match suspension until the club’s next league fixture in Waterford after the June break. However, vice captain, right-back John Flanagan remains out with an ankle injury, as does back-up netminder Aaron Shanahan.
Shelbourne Team News: Shelbourne are without a number of players for this tie for various reasons. Robbie Hedderman is suspended for having picked up four yellow cards. Greg O’Halloran is unavailable due to a condition of his loan deal with Galway United. Alan Byrne remains on the injured list due to an ankle injury. Better news in the case of James Keddy, who will come into contention after completing a full training session on Wednesday.
