Bohemians v Dundalk, Dalymount Park, 7.45pm
Keith Long believes Bohemians have the strength of character to upset the odds against champions Dundalk at Dalymount Park on Friday night.
The Gypsies come into the game on the back of a frustrating fortnight but Long says his players' hard work can once again see them rise to the occasion against the league leaders.
Bohs were the only team to defeat the Lilywhites in the league last season and also beat them in the Leinster Senior Cup earlier this month.
"Dundalk are back-to-back champions for a reason," said Long. "They are the benchmark in standards we all have to strive to match.
"These kind of games are the ones you want to play in, albeit we would like to be in better form coming into it.
"There are maybe some players who are suffering in confidence a little bit as they haven't yet hit the same heights as last season.
"But there is nobody you can point the finger at for not giving their all. We have a dressing room full of strong characters - the harder and smarter we work, the more our luck will change."
Eoin Wearen [hip], Ismahil Akinade [hamstring], Jason Caffrey [hamstring] and Adam Evans [virus] will sit out Friday's game.
But Long's defensive options are boosted by the return of captain Derek Pender, Anto Murphy and Dylan Hayes, who all sat out the loss to Derry with a virus that has hampered team selections over the last month.
Dundalk are without long-term absentees Ciaran Kilduff, who is ruled out with broken vertebrae, and Ciaran O’Connor, who had surgery on his fractured metatarsal last weekend.
Stephen O’Donnell joins them on the sideline and faces a few weeks out with ankle ligament damage. In better news, Paddy Barrett, Shane Grimes and Michael O’Connor all return to the squad after missing last weekend’s victory. Patrick McEleney also made a return to action last week after three weeks out.
“The squad are high on confidence again," Stephen Kenny told dundalkfc.com.
“It’s always a competitive game against Bohemians at Dalymount and tomorrow will be exactly the same. We have to go there and earn the win like we do every week. We are passing the ball really well at the moment I feel and we want to carry that into the match tomorrow.”
Cork City v St Patrick's Athletic, Turners Cross, 7.45pm
Cork City boss John Caulfield is once again counting on home comforts to keep his side on the rise ahead of the visit of St Pat's.
Cork will play their third home league game in a row on Friday night, as back-to-back wins against Finn Harps and Shamrock Rovers pushed them up to third in the table. The Saints are in fifth place after losing 1-0 to Bray Wanderers last weekend.
“It’s a huge game again against another of the title contenders," said Caulfield. "Liam has brought a lot of new players in this year and changed his team around. We know how big the game is, but we have two wins under our belt and hopefully we can continue that momentum into the game on Friday.
“The noise and the support over the last two games has been fantastic, and we are hoping to have a huge crowd on Friday night. It would be great if the crowd came out in force and got into the ground early.”
Kenny Browne returns from suspension for the hosts, but Eoghan O’Connell is ruled out through injury, as is John Kavanagh. Caulfield also has doubts over Karl Sheppard and Alan Bennett, both of whom are suffering with knocks.
Saints manager Liam Buckley could be without striker Christy Fagan, who will undergo a late fitness test after he was substituted early in last Saturday’s defeat to Bray.
Both goalkeepers Brendan Clarke [suspended] and Conor O’Malley [ankle injury] are set to miss out, with Patrick Jennings Jr set to deputise.
“Friday’s game is set to be a really tough game for us as we’re facing one of the top sides in the country," Buckley told the club's website.
"John Caulfield has a very strong squad and Turner’s Cross is always a great venue to play in as Cork are a very well supported side.
“We’ll be looking to go and compete with them. They play good football so it should be a good game for the neutral.”
Derry City v Sligo Rovers, Brandywell Stadium, 7.45pm
Sligo Rovers boss Dave Robertson has challenged his team to build on their first win of the season and stun high-flying Derry on their own patch.
Sligo finally got a league victory under their belts when sweeping past :Longford Town 3-0 last week, and Robertson is confident it can prove the turning point in their season.
“The focus this week has been on ensuring that the win at the weekend was a starting point for a season and something to build on," he said. "We want to use that win as our foundation and build on it."
The Candystripes are second in the league table after a strong start to the campaign. The sides clashed 10 days ago in the EA Sports Cup second round, with Derry prevailing 2-0 at the Brandywell.
Sligo will be without injured defender Gavin Peers, who has been missing since the Easter weekend loss to Bray Wanderers with a calf problem.
Tim Clancy returned to fitness last week playing the last half hour in the win against Longford. However he has fallen ill this week and is be out of the trip to Derry.
Candystripes boss Kenny Shiels is expecting a real test for his me, but said his side are fresh and ready to go.
“They will be a tough opponent, they have improved as they have gone on," Shiels told the club's website.
“The players know how difficult it is to beat a team twice in ten days and I’ve spoken to them about that. We want to get back to the fluency we had against Shamrock Rovers.
“We have had a chance to rest our legs a bit this week so we have no excuses.”
Long-term absentees Harry Monaghan and Gareth McGlynn are out, while Aaron Barry is a doubt. Dean Jarvis could come back into the squad.
Galway United v Longford Town, Eamonn Deacy Park, 7.45pm
Galway United boss Tommy Dunne will not underestimate bottom-of-the-table Longford Town despite his side's blistering home form.
The Tribesmen are chasing a sixth win from seven at Eamonn Deacy Park this year, with striker Vinny Faherty aiming to keep his excellent run of form going, as he hopes to score in his fifth successive league match at the Dyke Road venue.
"We're at home again, for us it's trying to get another three points if we can, but we know that it's going to be a difficult game because when Longford get their group together and have all their players, it's a tough match for anybody," said Dunne.
"From that point of view we know that we're up against it again tomorrow. Longford have their threats in their team, the same as ourselves. We've got to stop their threats and get our own going ourselves."
Stephen Folan [bulging disk] and Kevin Devaney [leg infection] are both ruled out. Ryan Connolly [calf] and John Sullivan [ankle] are both rated as 50/50.
Wexford Youths v Finn Harps, Ferrycarrig Park, 8pm
Wexford Youths boss Shane Keegan is prepared for a war of attrition against familiar opponents when Finn Harps come to town.
Both gained promotion from the First Division last year, though Ollie Horgan's side have settled into the top flight better than Wexford, notching league wins over Derry City, Longford Town and Bray Wanderers as well as a draw against Sligo Rovers.
They sit in mid-table on 10 points, while Wexford have just the one league win so far this season at home to Bray Wanderers.
Keegan is staying positive though and is relishing the chance to dig out a big three points.
"We don't do negativity in our dressing room," he said. "We're disappointed in our last two games for sure, but we know we're much better than those performances showed and we're looking forward to proving that Friday night.
"Ourselves and Harps are sick of the sight of each other at this stage! There's never anything between the teams and Friday night will be no different. We're both down a good few players and both missing our centre forwards through suspension so it's a real test of the depth of both squads."
In addition to the suspended Danny Furlong, the injured Lee Grace, Aidan Keenan, Peter Higgins, Craig Wall and Shane Dunne all still sidelined for the hosts.
Horgan has a mounting injury list with no fewer than eight players already ruled out through injury and suspension while two are struggling to shake off knocks picked up.
Dave Scully [suspended], Barry Molloy [hamstring], Josh Mailey [groin], Keith Cowan [groin], Kevin McHugh [groin], Richard Brush [groin], Raymond Foy [hamstring] and Michael Rafter [ankle] are all definite absentees while doubts hang over Damien McNulty and Matthew Crossan, who are both carrying knocks.
“Wexford have finished ahead of us in the First Division in the last four seasons and deservedly so,” said Horgan.
“They won the First Division last year with a mixture of great football with strength and speed.
“They have added the likes of a very talented Paul Murphy and Danny Ledwith as well as Aiden Friel who was one of the best players in the First Division last year. We will, as always, have our work cut out to stay with Wexford."
Shamrock Rovers v Bray Wanderers, Tallaght Stadium, 8pm
Shamrock Rovers are without David O'Connor and Luke Byrne for the visit of Bray as Pat Fenlon looks for a desperately needed boost.
Defeat to Cork City on Monday night left Fenlon lost for words, as he bemoaned his side's lethargic form.
“I haven’t said a lot to them to be honest. They know themselves. I can’t keep going in and having a go at them, you know? It just wasn’t good enough from us," said Fenlon after the defeat on Leeside.
Bray have added Liam O’Brien to their coaching staff as assistant to caretaker boss Harry Kenny.
Former Manchester United, Newcastle and Tranmere Rovers man O'Brien will be in the dugout in Tallaght.
Bray are third from bottom and will look to build on their hugely encouraging win over St Pat's last week after parting company with manager Mick Cooke following just one win in Premier Division matches this season.
