Shamrock Rovers -v- St. Patrick's Athletic

• Raymond Denning
• Sun, Jul 03 2011


St Patrick’s Athletic will look to maintain their position at the top of the table when they travel to Tallaght Stadium to take on Shamrock Rovers on Sunday afternoon (Kick off, 2.00pm)

The two sides are separated by only two points coming into this eagerly anticipated Dublin derby. Shamrock Rovers come into the match on the back of a 2-0 defeat to Sligo last weekend, which saw tonight’s visitors leapfrog them to move to the top of the table. However they have not lost at home in their last seven league games in Tallaght, a run stretching back to late April.

Hoops boss, Michael O’Neill said: “Obviously we were disappointed with the result and performance last week against Sligo. But the game on Sunday is a chance for us to make up for that and to go back on top, if we can get the win. We’ll be going out there to get the three points; we know we are capable of that.”

The hosts are missing Chris Turner through suspension, while Karl Sheppard misses out with an ankle injury.

St Pats return to domestic action after suffering a 1-0 away defeat to Icelandic side ÍBV on Thursday in the first leg of their Europa League first qualifying round tie. Their domestic form has been very impressive though, with four wins on the bounce, and not suffering a league defeat since April 9th.

Saints manager, Pete Mahon acknowledged that their European encounter may have an effect on this game: "There is going to be a little bit of tiredness in the camp after a taxing four days of travelling, training and hanging around hotels. I think that had an impact on the younger players who hadn't played in Europe before and hopefully they got a taste for it and will want to be back there again next season,” he said.

"My job now is to get the players' minds focused on tomorrow's game and that's what I'll be doing at training this afternoon. It's a Dublin Derby though and a great game for us to come back to. It's only up the road in Tallaght and it's a big, big game.

"Shamrock Rovers are the league champions and they deserve our respect because of that.

"I don't see any reason that, if we play well, we can't leave with a positive result. It will be a difficult match but it will be a hard game for them as well.”

St Pats will be without long-term absentee Conor Kenna, who returned to training on Saturday. They also have doubts over Derek Pender and Danny North who both suffered knocks in the defeat to ÍBV.

This is the sides’ third league meeting of the season, with Rovers having won 2-0 in March in Tallaght, while the meeting in Richmond Park in May ended 0-0.



Shamrock Rovers
Injured: Karl Sheppard (ankle).
Doubtful: None.
Suspended: Chris Turner.

St Patrick’s Athletic
Injured: Conor Kenna (knee).
Doubtful: Derek Pender, Danny North.
Suspended: None.

Referee: Dave McKeon.
Paddy Power Odds: Shamrock Rovers 17/20, Draw 9/4, St Patrick’s Athletic 10/3.
Extratime prediction: Shamrock Rovers 1-1 St Patrick’s Athletic.