General
- Thursday April 4th, 2024 @ 15:35
Preview: Saints V Shamrock Rovers (05/04/24)
The Saints return to LOI action for a sold out Dublin derby as they take on Shamrock Rovers in the second home game in the space of five days.
Kick-off is on Friday evening at 7.45pm at Richmond Park, all home and away tickets are gone, with another fantastic atmosphere set for Inchicore with just over 5,000 supporters expected.
If you don't have one of the golden tickets, Cathal Mulraney and Keith Treacy will bring you the action on LOITV from 7.30pm.
Pat's come into this game off the back of an excellent performance on Monday - a 3-0 win against Sligo Rovers.
Luke Turner scored on the double, from corners in the 10th and 42nd minutes to give his team a 2-0 lead at half-time.
Late on, 16-year-old Mason Melia opened his account for the season with a stunning finish from outside of the box, finding the bottom corner of the net.
Jon Daly's men have got ten points from their opening eight Premier Division games, including a draw in Drogheda on Friday and that win against Sligo, they currently sit in 5th position in the Premier Division table, two points off second.
OPPOSITION WATCH:
Shamrock Rovers currently sit in 4th place in the Premier Division table, with 12 points from their seven league games, including three wins in a row heading into Friday.
These sides met in the 2024 President's Cup final in Tallaght in February, with The Hoops securing a 3-1 victory in Tallaght.
Josh Honahan headed home between a Trevor Clarke brace with Jamie Lennon on target for Pat's as Rovers picked up the first silverware of the season.
The last time teams faced off in the Premier Division was a 2-0 league win for Rovers in October 2023, Aaron Greene and Graham Burke scored late goals in Inchicore.
Rovers beat Pat's 3-2 in Tallaght last May. Mark Doyle put the Saints 1-0 up before Lee Grace scored on the brink of half-time to level things up. A
Richie Towell double in the second half secured the win for the home side despite a late Ben McCormack strike.
The previous meeting in Richmond Park was a 2-0 win for Stephen Bradley's side in April. Johnny Kenny and a second-half Trevor Clarke strike combined to secure the points.
The first encounter between the sides in the 2023 Premier Division was a 2-2 draw in Tallaght Stadium last St Patrick's Day.
Richie Towell opened the scoring before an Eoin Doyle penalty in the 42nd minute made it 1-1.
Jack Byrne reinstated the lead for the home side before a late, and brilliant, Jake Mulraney goal in the 88th minute earned a well deserved point.
Tomorrow will be the 190th league edition of this famous old rivalry, the Tallaght side have had the upper hand overall with 79 wins to Pat's 61 with 49 draws.
DALY: "We want to get a little run going to continue to climb the table."
Manager Jon Daly can't wait to be back at a sold out Richmond Park for on the biggest games in Irish football, he began his pre-match preview with his reflections on Monday's 3-0 victory:
"We were very happy with the performance against Sligo Rovers, the lads certainly went out and showed what they are capable of.
That was our third clean sheet in the last four games and we were very bright at the attacking end and could have scored more. We want to try to build on that on Friday and get to get another positive result.
The players that came into the team did well, they've put their hand up and that's all we can ask as staff.
We've had some injuries but we've still got very good competition for places and good options across the pitch and that's a good headache to have as a Manager and a staff."
The Saints come into this weekend two points off 2nd spot, meaning a win in the derby could leave them in 2nd heading into their next game against Dundalk, Daly knows just how tight the league table is:
"It's been a very open first series, Shelbourne have started very well and got 20 points, but I don't think any of the other Managers will be happy with their points return. 2nd place is on 12 points and we're within reach of that after four points last weekend. We've had a slow start, like most other teams and we want to build on the points we have.
All of the teams have been taking points over each other, it's a tight league and it's about trying to get consistency and getting points on the board."
So what are Jon's thoughts ahead of Friday?
"We've got a huge game against Shamrock Rovers which we've been preparing for since Monday and we're looking forward to it.
The game is sold out and Richmond will be bouncing.
Rovers normally bring a big crowd and our own supporters have been brilliant, the atmosphere in these matches is normally good.
We want to bring the same energy levels and performance that we did against Sligo.
We're well aware that Rovers are a very very good side, Champions four years in a row for a reason and they've been in good form themselves, it's on us now to try and get a result and get a little run going to continue to climb the table.”
With three clean sheets in his four appearances this season, goalkeeper Danny Rogers has been a key part of the Saints' defensive record this season. However, he knows that he and his teammates will have to be on top form to get a positive result on Friday:
ROGERS: "Everyone is feeling positive heading into the game"
Goalkeeper Danny Rogers sat down for an in-depth chat on Wednesday, you can watch that in full on YouTube.
The 30-year-old has kept 3 clean sheets in his 4 starts since coming into the side and wants to keep that going:
"Everyone is feeling positive after Monday, a few of the lads got in and took their chance, we kept a clean sheet, scored three and could have scored a couple more so we want to bring that into Friday.
I think the Minnesota trip (during the international break) was good for bonding, we had some pitch sessions and the really competitive friendly game we had.
It was really important trip given the number of new players we have and we're a closer group off the back of it.
Shamrock Rovers are full of talent and it's going to be a tough game for us.
We've probably both hit a bit of form now at the same time, so it will be interesting to see how the game goes in front of a great crowd, we can't wait."
TICKETS / TV / UPDATES
All home and away tickets are gone, with another fantastic atmosphere set for Inchicore with just over 5,000 supporters expected.
If you don't have one of the golden tickets, Cathal Mulraney and Keith Treacy will bring you the action on LOITV from 7.30pm.
As always, updates can be found on the Official St Pat's FC App - available now on both the App Store and Play Store.
Updates will also be available across all the club's social media channels and our WhatsApp channel.
Photo credit: Sportsfile
