Drogheda United -v- Dundalk
Credit:
Dundalk will look to win their first points away from home this season when they travel to Drogheda for the first Louth derby of the 2011 season. (Kick-off 7.45)
Drogheda have lived up to all the pre-season expectations and find themselves languishing at the foot of the Premier Division table, and without a win from their opening seven games. Indeed they have managed to score only four goals all season and can have no complaints regarding their position in the league.
However, there have been some positives this season for the Drogs; despite conceding 13 goals, goalkeeper Stephen Trimble has proved a good find and should keep his place between the sticks ahead of David Quirke. Defenders Robert Kovascevics and Victor Ekanem have also looked impressive at times with the latter almost guaranteed to earn his third start for the club.
Ultimately good news has been hard to come by for manager Mick Cooke but he can take some joy in the fact that he has an injury free squad to pick from. Speaking earlier this week, Cooke revealed he was looking forward to a hotly contested derby.
“It will not be an easy game. Dundalk are a full time outfit and are in the Setanta Cup final, which is a testament to how much they have come on. The lads are up for this 110% and we will certainly look to put it up to Dundalk.”
In stark contrast to the home side, Dundalk come off the back of an impressive 2-1 victory over Northern rivals Cliftonville in the Setanta Cup on Friday night. Goals from Jason Byrne and Johnny Breen helped the Louth outfit to a 5-2 aggregate win and their place in the final is fully merited.
Things haven’t been going quite so well for Ian Foster’s men in the league however. Despite being tipped as one the sides to challenge Shamrock Rovers for top honours this season, Dundalk have underperformed and find themselves in joint sixth position.
The club’s main problems stem from their poor away form. They have lost all three games away from Oriel Park and have only scored three goals on the road this year. It’s something assistant manager Darius Kierans knows the side have to put right.
“We should have got it (their first away win) up in Richmond Park. It is a chance to put things right. We’ve won three games away in the Setanta Cup so I don’t think it’s a thing where we’re overly worried about it. It’s early season, but hopefully on Friday night we can put it right.”
Dundalk have several injury concerns heading into the 75th Louth league derby. Left back Eoghan Osborne is the long term absentee as he recovers from a fractured tibia. Also ruled out are midfield duo Greg Bolger and Stephen Maher who suffer from thigh and groin strains respectively. Dean Bennett and Shane Guthrie are also likely to miss out for the Lilywhites.
Drogheda need to start winning, and a result on Friday night would be the ideal way to finally kick start their campaign. The hosts will be desperate to take something form this one but motivation alone won’t be enough to stave off another defeat. Form suggests the men from Dundalk should take the three points here, and it’s difficult to see any other result.
Drogheda United
Injured: None.
Doubtful: None.
Suspended: None.
Dundalk
Injured: Eoghan Osborne (fractured tibia), Greg Bolger (thigh), Stephen Maher (groin).
Doubtful: Dean Bennett (hamstring), Shane Guthrie (concussion).
Suspended: None.
Referee: Alan Kelly.
Paddypower odds: Drogheda 4/1; Draw 5/2; Dundalk 4/6.
Extratime.ie match prediction: A 2-1 win for Dundalk.
Drogheda have lived up to all the pre-season expectations and find themselves languishing at the foot of the Premier Division table, and without a win from their opening seven games. Indeed they have managed to score only four goals all season and can have no complaints regarding their position in the league.
However, there have been some positives this season for the Drogs; despite conceding 13 goals, goalkeeper Stephen Trimble has proved a good find and should keep his place between the sticks ahead of David Quirke. Defenders Robert Kovascevics and Victor Ekanem have also looked impressive at times with the latter almost guaranteed to earn his third start for the club.
Ultimately good news has been hard to come by for manager Mick Cooke but he can take some joy in the fact that he has an injury free squad to pick from. Speaking earlier this week, Cooke revealed he was looking forward to a hotly contested derby.
“It will not be an easy game. Dundalk are a full time outfit and are in the Setanta Cup final, which is a testament to how much they have come on. The lads are up for this 110% and we will certainly look to put it up to Dundalk.”
In stark contrast to the home side, Dundalk come off the back of an impressive 2-1 victory over Northern rivals Cliftonville in the Setanta Cup on Friday night. Goals from Jason Byrne and Johnny Breen helped the Louth outfit to a 5-2 aggregate win and their place in the final is fully merited.
Things haven’t been going quite so well for Ian Foster’s men in the league however. Despite being tipped as one the sides to challenge Shamrock Rovers for top honours this season, Dundalk have underperformed and find themselves in joint sixth position.
The club’s main problems stem from their poor away form. They have lost all three games away from Oriel Park and have only scored three goals on the road this year. It’s something assistant manager Darius Kierans knows the side have to put right.
“We should have got it (their first away win) up in Richmond Park. It is a chance to put things right. We’ve won three games away in the Setanta Cup so I don’t think it’s a thing where we’re overly worried about it. It’s early season, but hopefully on Friday night we can put it right.”
Dundalk have several injury concerns heading into the 75th Louth league derby. Left back Eoghan Osborne is the long term absentee as he recovers from a fractured tibia. Also ruled out are midfield duo Greg Bolger and Stephen Maher who suffer from thigh and groin strains respectively. Dean Bennett and Shane Guthrie are also likely to miss out for the Lilywhites.
Drogheda need to start winning, and a result on Friday night would be the ideal way to finally kick start their campaign. The hosts will be desperate to take something form this one but motivation alone won’t be enough to stave off another defeat. Form suggests the men from Dundalk should take the three points here, and it’s difficult to see any other result.
Drogheda United
Injured: None.
Doubtful: None.
Suspended: None.
Dundalk
Injured: Eoghan Osborne (fractured tibia), Greg Bolger (thigh), Stephen Maher (groin).
Doubtful: Dean Bennett (hamstring), Shane Guthrie (concussion).
Suspended: None.
Referee: Alan Kelly.
Paddypower odds: Drogheda 4/1; Draw 5/2; Dundalk 4/6.
Extratime.ie match prediction: A 2-1 win for Dundalk.
About Sam Griffin
Sam joined Extratime for the 2011 season and is now the site's features editor. He is based in Dublin and covers all the clubs in the capital. He is also prone to the odd Drogheda … View Full Profile