Shamrock Rovers v Derry City, Tallaght Stadium, 8pm
Shamrock Rovers are on the way to clinching a 19th league title after away victories against their two main rivals, St Patrick's Athletic and Sligo Rovers, so far this month.
Tonight they play the side in fourth place, Derry City, and the Candystripes are making moves to ensure they are challenging at the top next season.
Michael Duffy joined Patrick McEleney in signing a pre-contract agreement for next season and the length of the deal - four years - is a clear sign of their intentions.
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Chairman Philip O’Doherty has promised a bigger investment next season and that could be even greater if Derry can land a European spot.
Such a prospect seemed unthinkable when Higgins joined but a return of 37 points from 23 games has brought them from relegation candidates to chasing third place.
Sligo Rovers are looking over their shoulders and victory for the visitors to Tallaght would move them level on points with the Bit O’ Red as they play tomorrow night.
For the Hoops, they could wrap up the title quickly if they keep up their recent performances. A crowd of 4,000 will be present and they will be keen to see a display fitting of back-to-back champions in waiting.
Team News
Shamrock Rovers: Aaron Greene returned from injury last week. Graham Burke, Joey O'Brien and Sean Hoare remain doubtful.
Derry City: Joe Thomson completes his three-match ban while winger Marc Walsh is close to a return
What they said
Stephen Bradley (Shamrock Rovers): "Everyone was delighted. It was obviously a Dublin Derby and we're playing our closest rivals. We knew it was an important game, so we were delighted with the three points but more importantly parts of the performance and the clean sheet was really good.
"Derry have been good. They'll work extremely hard like they always do and they've some good players. We know it's going to be a difficult game but it's one we're ready for and one we're looking forward to.
"It's great to play in grounds with the crowds back in. Sligo and then Pat's last week, it was great to see the fans back in and it's going to be brilliant to see 4,000 in Tallaght this week.
"We're getting back to some sort of normality, and I think you can see the quality of the games around the league has gone up and the intensity has gone up since the fans are back in, which is great to see."
Ruaidhri Higgins (Derry City): "They're the best team in the country and have been for a couple of years now.
"They have real quality all over the park and are clear at the top on merit. Rovers are the benchmark for the league and we're very much improving so it should be a good contest."
"Tallaght is a fantastic venue for football as well, so we’ll look to go there and be positive."
Finn Harps v Dundalk, Finn Park, 8pm
The 2021 campaign will be remembered for the competitive nature of the league positions from second to ninth place.
While Shamrock Rovers and Longford Town are set to occupy the top and bottom places in the division come the end of the season, the season has produced many unpredictable results and positions for the remainder.
Don’t take our word for it. In the last two fully-completed season, 2018 and 2019, the side which finished in the relegation play-off accumulated 28 and 27 points respectively from 36 games.
With eight matches to go in this campaign, Waterford sit in ninth place on 32 points. It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that the 40-point could be broken by every team, including the side which ends up in the dreaded play-off.
Tonight’s game in Finn Park is the third meeting of Finn Harps and Dundalk and the stakes are getting higher. The Lilywhites stood up in the face of circumstances to book a place in the FAI Cup semi-finals after a replay and they remain hopeful of pulling something out of the fire in this disastrous year to date.
The Cup will be parked because this is a six-pointer in the race to avoid the drop. Harps shocked Bohemians in Dalymount Park but after seeing results everywhere – as Waterford and Dundalk had already claimed three points – their joy probably turned to relief.
As such, just two points separate the teams this evening and the incentive of opening up a gap on Marc Bircham’s men again is present tonight.
Dundalk have turned a corner but Harps showed the Cup loss has not hit send their form spiralling as setbacks have done before.
Team News
Finn Harps: Karl O'Sullivan is suspended while Ethan Boyle, Ryan Rainey, Sean Boyd and Dan Hawkins are doubts for the contest.
Dundalk: Patrick McEleney, David McMillan, David McMillan, Brian Gartland and Wilfried Zahibo all miss out with injuries while a number of players will be assessed before kick-off.
What they said
Ollie Horgan (Finn Harps): "It's obviously a very difficult game from our point of view. We’ve played Dundalk twice in the last couple of weeks and weren’t able to win either game, home or away.
"Meanwhile they’ve won three games on the trot against very good sides and are probably in a better place than they were coming into the first game a fortnight ago.
"That said, we had a very good result last Friday down in Dalymount (v Bohemians) and all credit to the players for lifting themselves after the disappointment of the cup exit."
Vinny Perth (Dundalk): "I'll pick the team on the day of the game instead of Thursday, which is not ideal.
"We’re waiting on one or two players to come back and we’re trying to be careful with players as well.
"An example of that is Raivis Jurkovskis, who would have started his ninth game in 27 days if we selected him against Bohemians. Physically, something has to give there so we need to protect people.
"Once we get through this week, we're down to one game a week which will allow us to put some shape and structure on the team."
Drogheda United v St Patrick’s Athletic, Head in the Game Park, 7.45pm
The RTÉ2 cameras are in Drogheda for tonight’s fixture. The Saints suffered a first home loss since May last time out against Shamrock Rovers and their title hopes look to be all but over.
Securing a European spot – and preparing for an FAI Cup semi-final with Dundalk – will now be the focus.
Second place and a place in the Cup final would be a tremendous achievement early in the Stephen O’Donnell era and finishing off all the promise of this season in a strong fashion is important given that the league looks set to be even more competitive next year.
Undoubtedly the absence of some senior players lost to injury has been a difficulty for Pat’s – but the likes of teenagers Ben McCormack and Darragh Burns have stepped up admirably.
They are worth keeping an eye on tonight for viewers who may not see the Saints regularly.
Drogheda’s season has also been one of ups and downs and last week it looked like a couple of results could set them free of the relegation scrap and even dreaming of Europe.
The narrow defeat in Waterford, coupled with Dundalk’s two wins in recent days, leaves them back in the mix. The two sides below them in the table meet tonight to add to the concern.
The Saints secured two home wins in this fixture so far, but United were 3-1 winners in the reverse.
Team News
Drogheda United: Chris Lyons returned from injury last week in Waterford. Manager Tim Clancy serves a touchline ban.
St Patrick’s Athletic: John Mountney (knee) will miss the game with Robbie Benson (quad) & Lee Desmond (concussion) doubtful.
What they said
Stephen O’Donnell (St Patrick’s Athletic): "Drogheda have been going very well and they're having a very good season. It's always a tough place to go as we experienced early on in the season so again it's a chance for our boys to show their ability and their skills on national television.
"Training this week has gone very well and we will make sure that there is no hangover from last week because there is still so much to play for.
"I think the boys are enjoying their football and enjoying trying to perform week in week out with a bit of expectation which is always good.
"We are a young and enthusiastic group, and we are all looking forward to the game on Friday."
Watch live coverage of Drogheda United v St Patrick's Athletic from Head in the Game Park on RTÉ2 and the RTÉ Player from 7.30pm
