Cork City v Sligo Rovers, 1905 (Live on RTE2)
Sligo Rovers are the visitors to Turner’s Cross on Friday night in front of the TV cameras, as Cork City aim to maintain their pursuit of league leaders Dundalk.
City’s win over Limerick last weekend cut the gap on Dundalk back to three points, with the top two due to meet at Oriel Park on the last day of the season.
The visitors are fifth in the table coming into the game, having lost 2-0 at home to Drogheda United last weekend.
The sides have met twice already this season, with both encounters ending in stalemate.
City boss John Caulfield insists his side have shown they can deal with the pressure of challenging for the title.
“The atmosphere in training has been great,” he said.
“There was huge pressure going into the Limerick game and it was a vital three points for us. We knew that any slip up would really hand it to Dundalk, so there was pressure on the lads to perform and you could see that it was a very cagey game.
“I felt that we kept our heads, kept our composure, kept trying to get the winning goal, and when Rob Lehane came on, he injected that bit of magic to win it.
“I don’t think anyone has given us any chance at all, at any stage of the season. We are down to the last five matches, we are only three points behind and we are still not given much of a chance.
“Would I prefer to be in Dundalk’s position? Of course I would, but at the same time we are still in a good position and we have a good opportunity. Obviously we still need Dundalk to drop points at some stage on the run-in, but we can’t afford to drop points ourselves, because if we do, we hand the title to them. We have to try and keep the pressure on and bring it to the last game, which would be fantastic.”
Long-term injury victim Michael Rafter is the only definite Cork absentee, while Garry Buckley and Darren Dennehy return from suspension. John O’Flynn and Gearóid Morrissey have both struggled with knocks this week, with Caulfield set to assess both players closer to kick-off.
Sligo caretaker manager Gavin Dykes will be looking to get his first points on the board after the disappointing home defeat to Drogheda in his first game in charge.
John Russell remains out with the foot injury that kept him out of the Drogheda game, while former Cork players Iarfhlaith Davoren and Kalen Spillane are out with calf and back injuries respectively.
They join longer-term absentees Jeff Henderson and Alan Keane on the sidelines.
There are also doubts over the fitness of Gary Rogers with an ankle injury and Gavin Peers who has a thigh problem. Neither has been able to train this week.
Dykes doesn’t believe that Cork will be disadvantaged by the pressure of the title race.
“We would rather be where they are ourselves. But we will be going there and concentrating on doing what we have to do," he said.
"We will be looking to get a result from the game. I feel that we are capable of that but it won’t be easy.”
UCD v Dundalk, 1945
League leaders Dundalk go into tonight’s clash off the back of their first major trophy success since 2002 in last Saturday's EA Sports Cup final.
It has been almost three weeks since Dundalk last competed in the league but the Louth men, who are seeking their first title in 19 years, have remained top of the SSE Airtricity League with Cork City now just three points back with 28 matches played and St Patrick’s Athletic eight adrift.
This will be the third and final meeting of the sides this season with the Louth men being victors in both encounters so far this season in high scoring encounters.
In April, Dundalk came from behind to win 4-1 at Belfield while at Oriel Park in June they also recovered from an early goal to end 5-2 winners in what were entertaining games.
Dundalk will be without injured captain Stephen O’Donnell (knee) and Simon Kelly (calf strain).
Winger Daryl Horgan and insists the EA Sports Cup celebration are over now and that Dundalk’s focus is all on the remaining league games.
“It was a great occasion and to win it in front of a great crowd with a great atmosphere really was fantastic,” he said.
“Now we have to switch back to the league. Winning a competition like this gives us great confidence to go on and win more now. We have five more cup finals to play. The aim is to win as many as we can. Hopefully we can go now and get the win in every game. UCD are going to be tough – they’re all tough but hopefully we can go and get the right result.”
UCD manager Aaron Callaghan recognises the challenge his relegation battlers face tonight.
"Obviously Dundalk will be favourites going into the game,” he said.
“They have been flying in the league all season, and will be hoping to continue their form to pick up a league and cup double after a great win against Rovers in the league cup last weekend."
Dean Clarke will continue to miss out with his back injury while Tomas Boyle is also recovering from a hamstring injury. Gareth Matthews is suspended after picking up his fourth yellow card of the season against Limerick.
St Patrick’s Athletic v Shamrock Rovers, 1945
It’s third against fourth in the Dublin derby as St Patrick’s Athletic host rivals Shamrock Rovers at Richmond Park (kick-off 7.45pm).
The Saints, unbeaten in their last seven games in all competitions, will be looking to open up a 10-point gap over the Hoops, while also looking to maintain the pressure on the league’s top two sides, Dundalk and Cork City.
“We’ve five games to go in the league so we’re looking to finish with as many points as possible,” said St Pat’s manager Liam Buckley.
“The only thing we can control is our own games so we’ll be looking to get three points Friday and then take it on from there.”
“This is our fourth meeting with Rovers this season, we’ve won two and lost one, but they’ve all been tight games to date. The team and I know what the game means to all our fans, so we’ll be going all out for the win on Friday.”
St Pat’s are without the services of both Greg Bolger and Ken Oman through suspension, while they are boosted by the return from injury of Kenny Browne (back) and Ian Bermingham (ankle) – the defenders having missed last week’s 4-2 away win against Bray Wanderers.
Robert Bayly (flu) is Shamrock Rovers’ only absentee as manager Pat Fenlon looks to freshen up his side which looked a trifle jaded in salvaging a 1-1 draw with Bohemians at Dalymount Park on Tuesday night.
Fenlon has almost a full squad from which to pick, but is wary of the possibility of losing players to injury or suspensions as Rovers continue on two fronts in their quest for European football next season.
“We’re trying to rotate as much as we can,” he said. “We don’t have loads of players in every position. We’ve got one or two getting close to suspension, so we just have to be careful.
“We’ve probably got two chances of getting to Europe. We can beat Derry in the [FAI Cup] semi-final, get to the final with Pat’s [should they beat Finn Harps], obviously and [if we win] that’ll guarantee us.
"But we want to keep going [in the league] as much as we can, try and catch them as well.”
Bohemians v Limerick, 1945
Bohemians will come into tonight’s mid-table clash in good confidence after putting it up to Shamrock Rovers in their derby encounter on Tuesday.
Despite Europe being out reach and Bohs well clear of relegation worries, manager Owen Heary is adamant that they won’t be “just a side that turns up” or that “just sees out the season”.
“We still want to improve our performances. We still want to improve our home form. We still want to get a few more goals for Dinny, and there has to be more goals for us,” he said.
“I thought we deserved the three points on Tuesday, but before the match, knowing we were down a lot of bodies, we would have taken the one point.”
Eoin Wearen and Jake Hyland return from suspension and Craig Walsh has served his ban but he is likely to be out with a quad injury. Kevin Devaney (toe) and Dan Byrne (cruciate) remain out.
Anto Murphy, who has been sidelined with an ankle injury, was on the bench on Tuesday and is likely to a sub again on Friday as he continues to regain fitness.
Limerick manager Martin Russell is hoping his players can enjoy a good end to the season and move up the table, as they aim to extend their unbeaten record in.
The Blues are unbeaten in the capital this year, with three wins and three draws from their six visits, including victories over St Patrick’s Athletic and UCD in their most recent outings there.
“As a group, since I’ve come in, the majority have tried to put their best foot forward and that’s going to be the case again hopefully on Friday and until the end of the season,” he said.
“The league is competitive. There are only a few points between that middle group, and if we can go on a run until the end of the season there is no reason why we can’t finish a couple of places higher.”
Russell must do without the services of defenders Robbie Williams, Tony Whitehead (both hamstring), midfielder Jason Hughes (knee) and winger Jack Doherty (hip flexor).
Derry City v Athlone Town, 1945
Peter Hutton and his Derry side welcome relegation-threatened Athlone Town to the Brandywell.
The Candystripes come into this game on the back of a 5-0 win over Drogheda United in their FAI Cup quarter-final replay.
Manager Hutton is set to rest several key players for the upcoming cup semi-final against Shamrock Rovers.
Two players Hutton will have to plan without is defenders Shaun Kelly and Shane McEleney who are out through suspension.
Athlone on the other hand come into this game on the back of a 0-0 draw with Bohemians.
Manager Keith Long, who side sit bottom of the table two points behind UCD, will have to plan without John Mulroy, Stephen Quigley and Graham Rusk who are all ruled out for the season with injury.
Mark Hughes and Aidan Collins are doubts for a game where the Midlanders need at least point but wins are really needed if they are to put real pressure on UCD and Bray above them.
"We have no fear going to Derry," said Town captain Alan Byrne.
Drogheda United v Bray Wanderers, 1945
Drogheda United manager Damien Richardson has set his side the goal of overtaking fifth-placed Sligo before the end of the season, following their 2-0 win over the Bit O’Red last Saturday.
"The victory in Sligo was the pinnacle of my time here so far,” he said.
“Except for Gary O'Neill and Cathal Brady, it was the first time that I had a virtually fully fit squad to choose from and it showed in our performance.
“It was a very impressive display and we should have won by more but tomorrow night will post a different test. We need to be as assured at home as we are in our away games against what will be a strong Bray Wanderers side.
"I was confident when I took the job that the team would make progress but to make so much in such a short space of time has surprised me. That was encapsulated in the performance last Saturday which was deeply satisfying to watch.
I then challenged the players afterwards to overtake Sligo in the league table. The gap is only four points and this is an achievable target for the group. The team is playing very well at the moment and long may that continue.”
Drogheda will be without three suspended players for the visit of Bray Wanderers to United Park.
Peter McGlynn has an additional two-game ban for his dismissal in the FAI Cup game versus Derry City while both Garreth Brady and Shane Grimes have one-match suspensions to serve. Gary O'Neill is doubtful while Cathal Brady is set to miss out due to injury.
Bray Wanderers travel to Hunky Dory's Park in the knowledge that their injury and suspension crisis has abated.
Eric McGill has recovered from his back injury and is available for selection while Philly Hughes who has had a thigh problem for the last three weeks trained on Wednesday night and should be available. A final decision on his fitness will not be made until just before kick off on Friday.
The only injury concern is Michael Barker who has been struggling with and ankle injury. Defender Rob Maloney who was suspended for the St Pat’s game returns to the squad for the trip North.
Manager Alan Mathews said: "With the squad coming back to full strength we are looking forward to our trip to Drogheda.”
