Derry City FC v. UCD AFC, League of Ireland Premier
Division Round 32, Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium, Friday 29th
September 2023, kick-off 7.45pm
Derry City’s
title push has been dealt a significant blow after losing 1-0 to Sligo Rovers
last Friday. A late Stefan Radoslavjević goal punished the ten men of City,
who struggled to get a foothold in the game. The Candystripe faithful
felt hard done by, with referee Rob Harvey denying Derry a seemingly clear
penalty when the game was at 0-0.
Shamrock Rovers’ goalless draw with UCD rubbed salt into the Derry wounds, as
a win for Derry would have cut the gap to the top to two points.
Shamrock
Rovers now sit five points clear of Derry City at the top of the Premier
Division table and will need to lose at least two of their last five games in
order to give the Candystripes a chance at catching them. It's definitely not impossible, but it'll be some task. Ruaidhrí Higgins men suddenly found themselves looking over their shoulder too, as a win on Monday night for
St. Pat’s over Drogheda, in their game in hand, would have seen the Inchicore side go
into second place. Drogheda's Dayle Rooney's goal of the season contender ensured the win for the team from Louth however, keeping Derry in second.
Despite a draw
against the champions, made more impressive by the fact they had just 20% of
the ball and faced 23 shots, UCD’s relegation to the First Division was
confirmed on Friday. This came just a day after it was announced that manager
Andy Myler would leave his role at the end of the season. It was also confirmed
on Friday that UCD would be replaced in the Premier Division by Galway United.
The Tribesmen’s 4-0 away win over Kerry FC ensured their return to Ireland’s
top domestic league after a six year absence. Galway currently have a massive goal
difference of +66 and their 4-0 FAI Cup win over Dundalk shows that they ought
to be respected in 2024.
Friday’s meeting
between Derry City and UCD will be the second between the teams in September
alone. Derry swept the Students aside earlier in the month, beating them 5-0 in
the UCD Bowl. The Candystripes will hope for a similar outcome this time
round, but UCD’s resilience against Shamrock Rovers shows that Derry will have to be clinical.
Since that
win against UCD earlier in the month, City have drawn with Shamrock Rovers and lost to Sligo Rovers
– two results which have dented their title push.
Derry City
were without Patrick McEleney against Sligo on Friday – the 31 year old also
missed out on Derry’s game against Shamrock Rovers and hasn’t featured for the
Candystripes since that 5-0 win over UCD. Shane McEleney has served his one
game ban after a straight red card against Rovers, but City will be without
Ronan Boyce for the tie against UCD after his red card in Sligo. Jamie
McGonigle hasn’t played for Derry since their 3-1 away win to Dundalk at the
start of the month, but has been an unused substitute in the three games since
– he’ll be hoping to get a run out against UCD after scoring a hat-trick
against the Students last season. Sam Todd will also want to play against his
former club, but has played just twice for Derry since signing during the summer.
UCD have
nothing but pride to play for after the confirmation of their relegation. They
were without defender Adam Wells against Shamrock Rovers after suspension, but
he is eligible for the game against Derry. The Students haven’t scored in the
league since a 1-1 draw with Cork City on the 11th of August,
conceding eleven goals and picking up just one point since that draw in
Turner’s Cross. UCD’s main threat comes from 21 year old striker Danu
Kinsella-Bishop, who is their top scorer with five goals. Ciaran Behan has also
scored twice and made three assists from midfield in the 2023 campaign. 18 year
old Jake Doyle has netted thrice and recorded one assist. Donegal native
Jack Keaney is the UCD captain and has made 30 appearances this term. Winger
Daniel Norris has made 28, whilst former Derry midfielder Brendan Barr, Adam
Wells and Kinsella-Bishop have made 26. Departing manager
Andy Myler is no stranger to switching up his tactics. He has set up in a
4-2-3-1, 4-4-2, 5-3-2 and 5-4-1 this term.
There seems
to have been a lot of “what if’s” this season, but this match could have been
massively beneficial to Derry’s title challenge if they won last week in Sligo.
Despite last week's loss, a win for Derry on Friday would close the gap to Rovers back to two
points if the champions lose to Shelbourne. The Candystripes certainly aren’t
down and out yet, but they will want to finish the season in a strong fashion
should they be the ones lifting the trophy in November or not. They need to get
a run of wins together in order to make the most of any slip-ups from Shamrock
Rovers - if they are to occur again.
Pól O’Hare – 27 September 2023
No comments:
Post a Comment