by Rob Wright
We're just over halfway through the season and the race for the eircom League of Ireland Premier Division title is really beginning to heat up.
On Monday evening, two of the title hopefuls served up one of the most entertaining scoreless draws you are likely to witness all season.
Dublin rivals Shamrock Rovers and St Patrick's Athletic may not be two of the teams that the pundits tipped to challenge the likes of Cork City, Derry City and Drogheda United for the Premier League, but make no mistake, both teams have attained their lofty league positions on merit.
In a thoroughly entertaining match, both sides had chances to 
claim victory, with the goalkeepers working overtime. Rover's goalkeeper Barry Murphy again proved he is the best in the league with what will almost certainly go down as save of the season.
However, the Saints patient passing style of football and Rovers' aggressive and fluid counter-attacking approach cancelled each other out, leaving both sides with a well earned share of the spoils.
Saints will possibly be slightly the more disappointed with the draw given that they could have leap-frogged Drogheda to the top of the league with victory, but manager John McDonnell has seen his side lose some of their early season sparkle with injuries to the likes of Joseph Ndo and Alan Kirby.
Injuries were always likely to prove to be the main stumbling block to Saints' title aspirations given their relatively small squad size and lack of serious quality outside of the top 15 or 16 players. For McDonald's men the Rovers match was the first of three games that could go a long way to defining the club's season.
Cork City are next up for the Saints, before they face a testing UEFA Cup trip to Denmark to take on Odense BK. City, who have genuine league hopes of their own, can finally call on the services of Colin Healy and Gareth Farrelly and will be seeking to close the gap on the top two ahead of their two games in hand.
Odense may well provide McDonald's side with the toughest match they'll have all season. After taking a scoreless draw away from Richmond Park in the first leg, an experienced Odense side will know that their opponents can't afford to make a single mistake in Denmark and will be aiming to capatilise on their first-leg advantage.
Rovers' season meanwhile, has been nothing short of remarkable. It's roughly 18 months since some of the club's darkest days. In examinership and heading for relegation for the first time in their illustrious history under a manager who will surely go down as one of the most unpopular ever to be handed the reigns at Rovers. It's astounding how fortunes have changed for the Hoops.
Survival in the top flight and a decent run in one of the Cups would have been enough for many Rovers fans at the start of the season, but they now find themselves third in the league, in the semi-final of the League Cup and have European football within their grasp.
Much of the credit for Rovers' success thus far must go to manager Pat Scully. Scully came from Kilkenny City with little managerial experience and had supporters wondering whether this was too big a job, too soon for the former Rovers player. However, with the no-nonsense efficiency that has become his trademark, Scully built an entirely new team around one of the meanest defences in the country, winning the First Division title and continuing this season where last season's campaign finished off.
There's also been some good news for Rovers off the pitch this week, as long-suffering fans were given a chink of light at the end of a very long tunnel with the news that the Hoops' senior squad could be joining the rest of the club's set-up in Tallaght as soon as next year.
The long running saga over Rovers’ protracted move to Tallaght Stadium and the numerous obstacles put in front of them has already been well-documented, but the Hoops now hope they have found at least a temporary solution to their problems.
Club officials believe that the existing stand at the stadium can be completed without impacting on the on-going high court case that GAA club Thomas Davis has taken against Rovers and the South Dublin County Council. This could conceivably allow Rovers to play in the stadium, pending the outcome of what is sure to be a very lengthy and drawn-out case.
The week's other clash of league contenders also saw Cork City and Drogheda United play out a scoreless draw. It was a result that suited Drogheda more as they maintained their eight-point advantage over Damien Richardson's side, but with two games in hand, City will be hoping to close that gap soon.
Realistically, I believe the title will eventually boil down to a two-horse race between the Leesiders and Drogheda. Both have been here before in recent seasons and have the experience of mounting a title challenge when it matters most – during the run- in.
St Pat's thin squad will hurt them as the fixtures begin to pile up, while Rovers' youth and lack of experience may prove telling as the pressure mounts. Bohemians are also lurking with intent seven points off the pace, but are likely to drop further back as their lack of real killer-instinct in front of goal has seen them win just 8 of their 19 league games, averaging less than a goal a game.
There's a real contrast of styles between Cork and Drogheda.
Damien Richardson always tries to instil an element of flair and 
attacking swagger in his sides and Cork are no different. On their day, Cork can be the most exciting team in the country to watch, with the likes of Roy O'Donovan, John O'Flynn and Dennis Behan all capable of turning a game with a moment of magic.
By contrast, Drogheda are a much more efficient and tightly-packed unit, often putting defence first and at times battering their opponents into submission. Paul Doolin's side has become an incredibly tough team to beat and while the purists may sniff at some of their on-pitch displays, it's impossible to argue with results.
It's a race that could very well go down to the wire, but I still find it difficult to see past Cork when it comes to the crunch.
