After three weeks without any meaningful football, Lilywhites manager Jon Daly says his players are itching to get back into action when title-chasing Shelbourne visit Oriel Park on Friday night.
Dundalk’s last outing came in a low-key friendly against Longford Town at the AUL on August 15th while their last competitive game was six days earlier when they left the Ryan McBride Brandywell with a hard-earned point after a 1-1 draw with Derry City.
Since then, Daly and his players have been kicking their heels in frustration with a free weekend due to Dundalk’s early exit from the FAI Cup followed by the League of Ireland’s controversial 11th-hour decision to postpone last Sunday’s league game with St Patrick’s Athletic.
When you also take into consideration that Dundalk’s last home game was a month ago, against Galway United on August 2nd, then it is easy to see why Daly ‘feels it has been so long since we played a game.’
“When you get a positive result and performance like we did in Derry then you want to go and play the next game as quickly as possible,” he said.
“Granted, it’s our fault that we didn’t have a game the following week due to our performance in Drogheda in the FAI Cup so we can’t argue or complain about that because that was of our own making but with the Pat’s game getting called off as well, that game in Derry feels like months ago.
“We did play Longford in a friendly at the AUL just to get the boys a run-out, which was good, but it lacks the same kind of intensity as a league match. We need to try and remember that performance in Derry and remember that game now when we go and play Shelbourne on Friday.”
Last Friday’s 1-1 draw with Bohemians, coupled with Derry City’s 1-0 win in Waterford, saw Damien Duff’s side knocked off the top of the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division table for the first time since March but Daly is expecting a big response from the Tolka Reds.
“They’re a very good side who are fighting for a league title and they’ve literally just gone off the top of the league so I’m sure they’ll be looking to get back there as quickly as they possibly can,” he said.
“They’ve recruited well during the window. When you take someone like Will Jarvis out of any team then it’s going to be a huge blow but they’ve brought in Harry Wood, Ali Coote and Aiden O’Brien so they’ve got some good options in the forward areas.
“They’ve got some good experience at the back and they’re solid in the middle of the park so they’re a very good, well organised and structured team.
“They probably haven’t won as many recent games as they would have liked to and they’ve dropped points but they’ll be looking to try and get themselves back going again to try and finish strongly and give themselves the best chance of winning the league.
“It’s our job to ensure we stop that and we get three points ourselves and help ourselves to get out of the situation that we’re in.”
| Pos | Club | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Shelbourne | 34 | 15 | 12 | 7 | 37 | 26 | 11 | 57 |
| 2 |  Derry City | 34 | 14 | 13 | 7 | 48 | 29 | 19 | 55 |
| 3 |  Shamrock Rovers | 34 | 15 | 10 | 9 | 47 | 34 | 13 | 55 |
| 4 |  St Patrick’s Athletic | 34 | 15 | 8 | 11 | 48 | 37 | 11 | 53 |
| 5 |  Galway United | 34 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 30 | 26 | 4 | 50 |
| 6 |  Sligo Rovers | 34 | 13 | 9 | 12 | 38 | 47 | -9 | 48 |
| 7 |  Waterford FC | 34 | 13 | 5 | 16 | 41 | 44 | -3 | 44 |
| 8 |  Bohemians | 34 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 37 | 41 | -4 | 40 |
| 9 |  Drogheda United | 34 | 7 | 12 | 15 | 40 | 56 | -16 | 33 |
| 10 |  Dundalk FC | 34 | 5 | 10 | 19 | 23 | 49 | -26 | 25 |
Dundalk’s inactivity last weekend was compounded by Drogheda United’s 7-0 win over Sligo Rovers at Weaver’s Park, a result that saw the Boynesiders move off the bottom of the table and drastically improve their goal difference.
However, with the Drogs not playing until Sunday, a Dundalk victory over Shels would move them off the bottom and ramp up the pressure on Kevin Doherty’s men going into their clash with St Patrick’s Athletic at Richmond Park that evening, while it would also move the Lilywhites within two points of Bohemians, who face Shamrock Rovers earlier that morning.
“If we can beat Shelbourne on Friday, we don’t just stay in and around Drogheda but we also potentially grab onto the coattails of Bohemians and Pat’s who are the two teams above that,” said Daly.
“Having the Pat’s game on the Thursday night the following week is also a positive for us and if we can manage to pick up points in these next two games then we’d be right back in the hunt.
“It’s not nice to be in the situation or the position that we’re in. Nobody wants to be there but that’s the reality that we’re in at the moment and we need to try and get points on the board as quickly as possible and try to claw our way out of it.
“The boys have trained well and the atmosphere has been good. If you came in to watch our training then you wouldn’t think with the atmosphere and the quality that is on display that we’re a team where we are.
“It’s a credit to the players and the staff that they’ve kept that belief and confidence within the group going forward and it’s just about trying to get a little run of results together to get to where we need to go.”
Friday night’s game is the first Dundalk have played since the passing of former manager Jim McLaughlin and Daly paid tribute to a man who led the club to three league titles, three FAI Cups and a host of other honours between 1974 and 1983.
“The impact that Jim had, not just on Dundalk, but on the League of Ireland in general, was fantastic,” said Daly. “He had an unbelievable management career, and it’s incredible to see what he achieved.
“You could see at his funeral what he meant to the town of Dundalk, not just the club. The turnout was fantastic and I’m sure it was well appreciated by his family. I think it was only right that the players and everyone at the club went out and paid our respects.
“Hopefully, he’ll be looking down on us and he gives us a little bit of luck and we can go and get the three points to mark the first game since his passing.”
