The sides that are due to be involved in European qualifiers in the not too distant future return to Monday night action in the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division, although in Drogheda United's case, today is also the D-Day when they find out whether they will be able to be reinstated into the UEFA Conference League.
Last week, the club revealed that UEFA had informed them that they will not be allowed to take part in Europe's third tier club competition due to ownership rules because Danish side Silkeborg, who are also owned by the Trivela Group, also secured a place in the Conference League through their league position.
Under UEFA rules, two sides from the same owner cannot enter the same European competition, and Silkeborg take priority due to their higher league position under UEFA guidelines.
Drogheda appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport with a ruling to come today, although manager Kevin Doherty told RTÉ Sport's John Kenny on Friday that he is confident that the club have a "very, very strong case".
Drogheda United v Shamrock Rovers, Sullivan and Lambe Park, 7.45pm
On the pitch, Drogheda are still in contention for the European places for next year, sitting third after a 0-0 draw with St Patrick's Athletic on Friday in which they were indebted to goalkeeper Luke Dennison for a penalty save against Saints striker Mason Melia.
But now the task is to build on that in a head-to-head against the side at the top of the standings.
The Drogs sit in third place in the league table, eight points off tonight's opponents. While they're unbeaten in their last six games, five of those games were draws, suggesting that they've become difficult to break down, however the challenge now is to start turning those draws into wins.
Drogheda's last defeat was a chastening 3-0 defeat away to Rovers at the start of May and they'll be eager for a measure of revenge, while the rest of the league will be hoping to see the Hoops stumble as they threaten to pull clear at the top.
They'll face a tough task tonight against a Shamrock Rovers side who took another big step in their title quest by beating Shelbourne late on at Tolka Park on Friday.
While they went into the Shels game with a fully fit squad, defender Adam Matthews picked up a knock and has been ruled out of tonight's game and potentially "for a few weeks" beyond that according to his manager Stephen Bradley.
But recent Republic of Ireland call-up Josh Honohan, who scored the winner, will be able to feature despite being forced off himself immediately after his goal.
While he can avail of a fully fit squad - Matthews aside - speaking to his club's social media channel, Bradley is taking nothing for granted tonight.
"A good win on Friday but it's important we move on and focus on what will be a difficult game against a very good Drogheda team who are having a great season, so we know we've got to be at our best to go there and get three points," he said.
St Patrick's Athletic v Shelbourne, Richmond Park, 7.45pm
When the season kicked off, few would have expected Shelbourne to be down in sixth at this point in the season but that's where the reigning champions are right now after Friday's home defeat to Shamrock Rovers.
Now 12 points adrift of the top, Damien Duff's side must rally to try and get back into the European places, starting with tonight's trip to face fourth-placed St Patrick's Athletic who are only three points above them in the standings.
Duff will have been pleased to see centre back Paddy Barrett play a full 90 minutes on Friday after his recent lay-off while Sean Boyd also returned to make a second half cameo and the manager will have a virtually full deck to pick from tonight.
"I can't wait already and the players, more often than not, mirror me. Disappointed tonight but they need to get up off the deck and be excited about Monday," Duff told his club's media on Friday.
Pat's on the other hand have been inconsistent with two wins, two draws and a defeat from their past five matches.
St Patrick's Athletic come into the game off the back of a scoreless draw with Drogheda United on Thursday evening
The result saw Stephen Kenny's side lose further ground on the league leaders and they go into this Dublin derby nine points off the lead, knowing that they really can't afford to lose further ground.
Kenny is expecting a more open game against Shels and he believes his side can bounce back from Friday's disappointment in quick order.
"Shelbourne will be a different game (than Drogheda), they have a strong squad with lots of options, it's a Dublin Derby and one we are looking forward to," the Saints boss said.
"We want to keep out unbeaten home run going in front of our supporters (St Pat's last home defeat was a 3-2 loss to Dundalk on 3 June last year), a big win tomorrow night could be hugely significant for the team.
"We've got to rally around each other, stick together collectively and work hard for each other. I want the players to continue to believe in themselves and put in a strong performance to get the win that we desire, that has to be our objective."
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