Noel King looks to guide Dundalk to their first league win of 2024 at the 12th attempt when they welcome in-form Bohemians to Oriel Park in the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division on Friday night.
The newly-appointed manager takes charge for the first time with Dundalk propping up the table almost a third of the way through the season, having taken just five points from the 33 available so far.
The Lilywhites produced one of their most encouraging halves of football of the year after the break in Sligo last Friday, where Jamie Gullan’s penalty earned them a 1-1 draw, and they will now aim to build on that by scoring their first home league goal in six months.
They are without a goal at Oriel Park since Daniel Kelly netted in injury-time against Bohs last October, with their only strike in the intervening period coming from Eoin Kenny against Drogheda United in the PTSB Leinster Senior Cup/Malone Cup clash in early February.
However, at the other end, there have been positive signs. Since conceding five to Sligo last month, Dundalk have shut the back door at home with three consecutive scoreless draws against Waterford, Drogheda and St Patrick’s Athletic.
It is, though, the club’s worst start in their near 100-year league history. King will now hope to turn their fortunes around, starting with what is the first of back-to-back games on the Carrick Road, against a Bohs side that Dundalk faced in Dublin just last Monday week.
On that occasion, Dundalk were dominant in the first half but were unable to get their noses in front and eventually fell to James Akintunde’s late header. Now, it must be noted, they are likely to face a different animal with the Gypsies having made six changes that night to their previous lineup.
While Dundalk have had four draws and three defeats in their seven outings since mid-March, Bohs have bagged five wins in the same period and are the hottest side in the country right now.
| 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 |
Their three-game winning streak over the past fortnight has lifted them into fourth on 19 points, behind Shamrock Rovers and Derry City only on goal difference, and just three points off leaders Shelbourne.
This will be a huge night for Dundalk who will have to focus on their own job, although the visit of seventh-placed Sligo to ninth-placed Drogheda – who are three points above their neighbours – will certainly have their attention as they look for a way out of their current predicament.
Bohs were in Oriel Park in February for a Leinster Senior Cup group game, which ended 0-0, but it was one where the clubs fielded their U20 teams. The Gypsies’ last league visit to the venue was that aforementioned October meeting when Paul Doyle and Kelly scored in the final quarter-hour to secure a 2-0 win.
Team News
Robbie Mahon and Ciaran McGuckin miss out with injury while Mayowa Animasahun and Jamie Gullan are doubtful after picking up knocks in the 1-1 draw with Sligo last Friday night.
Quotes – Noel King
“It’ll be a tough game but every game in this league is tough at the minute. Alan Reynolds has done a good job since he went in at Bohemians. I know him well and all of his teams, certainly if they represent him, will be tough and will be strong.
“People can say anything, that Dundalk are a great team who’ll play their way out of it, but it’s difficult when you’re bottom of the league. We’re adrift at the minute and certain things can get into people’s heads that can be a problem. It’s not a given that we’ll just escape and I think that’s why a change has been made and that’s why I’m here.
“I’ve watched the last couple of games and the team played quite well, especially in Sligo last week. There’s a certain confidence in the group and there seems to be good players in the group. We have 25 matches to play, there is a window still to come and a chance to get players in and out, so there is everything to play for, starting on Friday night.”
Quotes – Jamie Gullan
“I think we’ve shown a lot of fighting spirit in the last three games and we’ve been really positive. Even when we went 1-0 down in Sligo last week, we didn’t let our heads drop, which you’d expect from a bottom-of-the-league side. We all stuck together and we got a well-deserved draw
“We just need to build on that against Bohs on Friday night and when we get the first three points that we deserve, hopefully it’ll be the first of many. We just need to keep going.”
Match Officials
Referee: Rob Hennessy
Assistants: Chris Campbell and Darren Carey
Fourth Official: Declan Toland
