Limerick 37 vs Shelbourne

• David Byrne
• Thu, Sep 11 2008




Limerick 37 welcome promotion hopefuls Shelbourne to Jackman Park in a game that could make or break Shelbourne title hopes (Kick-off 7:45pm). Fifth-placed Limerick 37 host fourth-placed Shelbourne in a mouth-watering tie at Jackman Park this Friday night.

A win for Dermot Keely’s side will give them a much needed confidence boost after they have dropped to fourth place in the First Division after a 2-1 defeat to promotion rivals Sporting Fingal at Morton Stadium.

Shelbourne will be looking for revenge when they travel to Jackman Park this Friday after Mike Kerley’s young side shocked Shelbourne the last time these two sides met. A 2-0 win in favour of the Shannonsiders in Tolka Park in July will be fresh in the minds of Shelbourne’s players and supporters.

Limerick manager Mike Kerley believes that the pressure is on Shelbourne as they bid to stay in touch with the top three sides in the table

“Shelbourne have spent a lot of money this year on players. They have been one of the most impressive sides we have faced this season, “he said.

“They probably have up to 16 players with Premier Division experience and some of them have won cups and other titles. Friday's game is a big one for Shelbourne.

“They will feel that they have to win this one in order to keep in touch with the top two sides in the Division. If they lose, Shelbourne season could be over. I think Friday's game will be exciting as a result of Shelbourne needing to go for the win. Obviously, we will be trying to win the game ourselves. I think the people who come along on Friday night can expect to see an exciting match.”

Limerick Team News: Mike Kerley has nearly a full squad to choose from with the exception of goalkeeper Brian Collopy and defender Jamie Wunsch who are both unavailable due to hamstring injuries. Tommy Barrett faces a late fitness test to determine if he can play on Friday night.

Shelbourne Team News: Dermot Keely has no injuries to worry about but James Chambers (4 yellow cards) and Gary McCabe (second of a three additional games ban) are suspended for the trip to Jackman Park.

Extratime Prediction: Shelbourne are slight favourites with the bookies at odds of 6-4, with Limerick at 8-5 to win and a draw at 11/5. Despite these odds, Limerick have put a decent run of results together recently and they are well capable of picking up some very important points at home but with Shelbourne looking to strengthen their promotion bid a draw is the mostly likely result. We think that this game is likely to end in a score draw, 1-1.