Dundalk look to continue home form against Shels
Dundalk will look to secure their second home win in a row after suffering a 3-0 loss at Sligo Rovers last time out as they welcome Shelbourne to Oriel Park tonight (kick off: 7.45pm).
Shels are looking for a returning to winning ways after a defeat by Shamrock Rovers and a draw with St Patrick’s Athletic in their previous two games.
Shelbourne and Dundalk have not met in league action since 2008, when the four games were divided equally, with one win each and two 0-0 draws.
The Dublin side have striker Paul Byrne back from an ankle injury but Glenn Cronin misses this game through suspension.
Dundalk striker Mark Griffin (groin), left-back Eoghan Osborne (leg) and centre-half Luke Danville (hamstring) are all out.
Midfielder John Mountney and defender Derek Foran face fitness tests. A late decision will be made on both Mountney (groin) and Foran (heel).
Shelbourne boss Alan Mathews said: “We didn’t play particularly well last week but we showed a different side to our team – great character, good resilience and dug out a good point in the end against a very good St Pat’s team. I was happy with it.”
Despite the recent home win, Dundalk manager Seán McCaffrey remains concerned by his side’s lack of away form.
“Home form is very important. But it’s no more important than the away form,” he told Dundalkfc.com. “The only thing is, psychologically, teams playing away don’t seem to have much confidence.
“We are trying to instil an attitude in our players that it doesn’t matter whether we’re home or away. It’s all down to how good the pitch is.”
