Dundalk -v- St. Patrick's Athletic
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Ian Foster will be hoping that Dundalk will bounce back after their shock defeat to Drogheda when they face St Patrick’s Athletic on Monday evening (kick-off 7.45pm).
The last meeting of these two sides this season ended in an intriguing 3-2 win for The Saints. The Lilywhites lead 2-0 with a half-hour left on the clock but a stunning comeback from Pete Mahon’s side meant that they secured all three points.
Dundalk midfielder Greg Bolger insisted that fans are yet to see the best of him after he only featured in six of Dundalk’s opening 19 games this season. “I thought I was a bit fresher against Drogheda. I’m back now and hopefully I won’t get any more injuries. I felt good on Friday. I have no niggles now, I’m as fresh as a daisy – it’s the first time that I can say that since I came to the club. I’m just hoping to kick on and kick the boys on. I know Friday night was disappointing but we’ll see what happens on Monday; hopefully, we can get a result.”
The Lilywhites were defeated 2-1 by Drogheda on Friday night and Bolger has acknowledged that it was heartbreaking to lose to The Drogs: “You can say it’s a blip; it’s the first home game we’ve lost. It’s just a pity that it happened to be to Drogheda. No disrespect to them, and it’s a derby game, but if you were to lose to one of the so-called bigger teams and if they were better on the night, it would be easier to take. But it’s just heartbreaking for us all.”
Ian Foster will be without Eoghan Osborne, Stephen Maher, Stephen McDonnell, Jason Byrne and Michael Hector due to injury. Shane Guthrie is unavailable for Dundalk as he is on loan from St Pats. Dean Bennett is a doubt after he was carried off injured in the defeat at the hands of Drogheda.
The Saints are still missing Conor Kenna, and defender Derek Pender is a doubt as he is recovering from an injury that he picked up against Crumlin United. Speaking about the game, manager Pete Mahon said that he may have to rest players due to slight injuries: ““We have a couple of niggly injuries and due to the fact we are playing on a plastic surface tomorrow, we will have to give it some thought to whether we rest the players.”
“We have done well on their plastic surface, and we played Cliftonville (Setanta Cup) earlier in the season on one, so most of the players have experienced it. There are no easy games. Drogheda are coming into form, they beat Dundalk on Friday and that was a great win for them. We are facing three away games (Dundalk, Drogheda Utd and Galway Utd), and we will be looking to get seven points from them to keep us near the top of the table.”
Dundalk
Injured : Eoghan Osborne (fractured tibia), Stephen Maher (groin), Stephen McDonnell (knee), Jason Byrne (hamstring), Michael Hector (knee)
Doubtful : Dean Bennett (ankle)
Unavailable : Shane Guthrie due to the terms of his loan agreement from St Pats. Suspended : None
St Patrick’s Athletic
Injured : Conor Kenna
Doubtful : Derek Pender
Suspended : None
Referee : Derek Tomney
Paddy Power Odds : Dundalk 17/10; Draw 11/5; St Patrick’s Athletic 6/4
Extratime.ie prediction :Dundalk to win 2-1
The last meeting of these two sides this season ended in an intriguing 3-2 win for The Saints. The Lilywhites lead 2-0 with a half-hour left on the clock but a stunning comeback from Pete Mahon’s side meant that they secured all three points.
Dundalk midfielder Greg Bolger insisted that fans are yet to see the best of him after he only featured in six of Dundalk’s opening 19 games this season. “I thought I was a bit fresher against Drogheda. I’m back now and hopefully I won’t get any more injuries. I felt good on Friday. I have no niggles now, I’m as fresh as a daisy – it’s the first time that I can say that since I came to the club. I’m just hoping to kick on and kick the boys on. I know Friday night was disappointing but we’ll see what happens on Monday; hopefully, we can get a result.”
The Lilywhites were defeated 2-1 by Drogheda on Friday night and Bolger has acknowledged that it was heartbreaking to lose to The Drogs: “You can say it’s a blip; it’s the first home game we’ve lost. It’s just a pity that it happened to be to Drogheda. No disrespect to them, and it’s a derby game, but if you were to lose to one of the so-called bigger teams and if they were better on the night, it would be easier to take. But it’s just heartbreaking for us all.”
Ian Foster will be without Eoghan Osborne, Stephen Maher, Stephen McDonnell, Jason Byrne and Michael Hector due to injury. Shane Guthrie is unavailable for Dundalk as he is on loan from St Pats. Dean Bennett is a doubt after he was carried off injured in the defeat at the hands of Drogheda.
The Saints are still missing Conor Kenna, and defender Derek Pender is a doubt as he is recovering from an injury that he picked up against Crumlin United. Speaking about the game, manager Pete Mahon said that he may have to rest players due to slight injuries: ““We have a couple of niggly injuries and due to the fact we are playing on a plastic surface tomorrow, we will have to give it some thought to whether we rest the players.”
“We have done well on their plastic surface, and we played Cliftonville (Setanta Cup) earlier in the season on one, so most of the players have experienced it. There are no easy games. Drogheda are coming into form, they beat Dundalk on Friday and that was a great win for them. We are facing three away games (Dundalk, Drogheda Utd and Galway Utd), and we will be looking to get seven points from them to keep us near the top of the table.”
Dundalk
Injured : Eoghan Osborne (fractured tibia), Stephen Maher (groin), Stephen McDonnell (knee), Jason Byrne (hamstring), Michael Hector (knee)
Doubtful : Dean Bennett (ankle)
Unavailable : Shane Guthrie due to the terms of his loan agreement from St Pats. Suspended : None
St Patrick’s Athletic
Injured : Conor Kenna
Doubtful : Derek Pender
Suspended : None
Referee : Derek Tomney
Paddy Power Odds : Dundalk 17/10; Draw 11/5; St Patrick’s Athletic 6/4
Extratime.ie prediction :Dundalk to win 2-1
