Dundalk head to the Ryan McBride Brandywell on Friday night knowing that a win over second-placed Derry City would see them close the gap on the Candystripes to just four points, with a game in hand.
The Lilywhites have drawn five and lost two of their previous seven matches on the road this season and with Friday night’s game followed by another trip to the north-west to face Finn Harps on Monday night, this weekend would be the perfect time for Stephen O’Donnell’s side to rack up a first away win of the campaign.
Dundalk head into the game on the back of an impressive win and performance against Bohemians at Oriel Park last week whereas Derry slipped to a 1-0 defeat against league leaders Shamrock Rovers at Tallaght Stadium. Prior to that, Ruaidhri Higgins’ men were held to successive draws on their own patch against Bohemians and St Patrick’s Athletic.
“We’re looking forward to the game,” O’Donnell told dundalkfc.com. “Derry is one of the toughest places in the league to go at the minute but we’re on a good run and a lot of players are playing with confidence and freedom.
“Derry are coming off the back of one point but two very good performances from their last two games, at home to Pat’s and away to Shamrock Rovers so they’ll be chomping at the bit.
“The Brandywell is a great place to play, there’ll be a good crowd, a good atmosphere and these are the sort of games that you want to play in. We’ve had a good week of training and we’ll be going up there looking to win the game.”
The last meeting between the sides in the Maiden City came last August when a Jamie McGonigle penalty secured Derry City their first win over Dundalk at the venue since 2012.
Only three of the Dundalk team that started that afternoon are still at the club: Andy Boyle, who will miss Friday’s night’s clash through suspension, David McMillan and Daniel Kelly.
Another three, Cameron Dummigan, Michael Duffy and Patrick McEleney, made the switch to Derry over the winter where they were joined by another former Dundalk player, Will Patching.
Ticket Information
Tickets for the game are available online at this link. Dundalk supporters are advised to buy a ticket in advance as there will be none available at the ground before kickoff.
The match will also be streamed live on LOITV. A Match Pass costs just €7.
