League Of Ireland Local News Update
Ardee News and Sport – League Of Ireland Local News Update
League of Ireland Premier Division
Keeley’s Three-Minute Blitz Keeps Drogheda Top as Derry Self-Destruct
Premier Division: Derry City 1-3 Drogheda United
Centre-half Conor Keeley was the unlikely match-winner at the Brandywell on Friday night as Drogheda United stormed back from a goal down to sink ten-man Derry City and remain top of the SSE Airtricity Premier Division.
In a chaotic spell midway through the second half, Keeley struck twice in three minutes after Liam Boyce had opened his Derry account—only to see red moments later for a rash foul on the Drogheda defender.
Boyce’s glancing header on 61 minutes looked to have given the Candystripes the breakthrough after a composed opening hour. Rising above Keeley, the Belfast striker met Ronan Boyce’s right-wing cross perfectly to beat Luke Dennison and give the home side a deserved lead.
But in a dramatic reversal of fortunes, Boyce went from hero to villain in the blink of an eye, receiving a second yellow card for tripping Keeley near the halfway line. It was Derry’s fourth red card of the season and sparked a collapse that handed the visitors the initiative.
Two minutes after the sending-off, Keeley got his revenge, powering home from Shane Farrell’s pinpoint cross to level the match. The Meath man then stunned the Brandywell crowd with a thunderous volley into the roof of the net after a defensive lapse allowed him space on the edge of the box.
Shell-shocked Derry tried to respond with Gavin Whyte forcing a save from Dennison after good work from substitute Shane Ferguson, but Drogheda weren’t done yet.
With six minutes left, Warren Davis sealed all three points after Owen Lambe’s long throw caused panic in the home box. Carl Winchester nodded down into the path of Davis, who made no mistake from close range to net his third goal of the campaign.
The result continues Drogheda’s superb start to the season, with a fifth win from nine keeping them at the summit. For Derry, it’s a sobering fourth defeat and leaves them trailing the leaders by seven points already.
Tiernan Lynch will be frustrated after his side dominated large spells, particularly in the first half, when Patrick Duffy forced a fine save from Dennison and Boyce linked play cleverly in attack. But the loss of discipline once again cost the Brandywell outfit dearly.
Player Ratings:
Derry City: Maher 5, Boyce 5, Connolly 5, Holt 6, Cann 5 (Ferguson 6, 75); Winchester 7, Benson 6 (Whyte 6, 75), O’Reilly 6, Mullen 6 (Patton 6, 81), L Boyce 6, Duffy 7.
Drogheda United: Dennison 7; Kane 7, Quinn 6, Keeley 9, Markey 8, Oluwa 7, Farrell 8 (Heeney 6, 72), Bolger 7, Brennan 7 (Doyle 6, 81), Lambe 7, Davis 8.
Referee: Rob Harvey (Dublin)
Hakkinen Own Goal Hands Relentless Dundalk Record-Breaking Win
League of Ireland First Division: Dundalk 1-0 Cobh Ramblers
Dundalk continued their blistering start to the First Division campaign with a narrow but significant 1-0 win over Cobh Ramblers at Oriel Park, courtesy of an unfortunate Jonas Hakkinen own goal.
Ciarán Kilduff’s side made history with the victory, reaching 25 points from a possible 27—the best start in the club’s long and storied history. That return surpasses even the celebrated Dundalk sides of 1969/70 and 2015, and firmly places the Lilywhites as front-runners for an immediate return to the Premier Division.
Despite their dominance in possession and territory, Dundalk were made to work hard for the win by a stubborn and well-organised Cobh side. The breakthrough finally came ten minutes into the second half when Sean Keogh, lively throughout, surged past Nolan Evers on the right flank. His driven low cross skidded across the six-yard box, where the unfortunate Hakkinen diverted it into his own net under pressure.
It was no more than the hosts deserved after a first half full of chances. Leo Gaxha came closest on 17 minutes when his close-range strike was dramatically cleared off the line by John O’Donovan. Vinnie Leonard also tested the visiting defence shortly after the restart, but again O’Donovan came to Cobh’s rescue.
The Lilywhites could have put the game beyond doubt late on, but Dean Ebbe’s header from another Keogh delivery was well saved by Timo Martin.
Cobh offered little in the way of attacking threat for most of the night, though they did muster a couple of half-chances in the dying moments. Barry Coffey saw a speculative effort held comfortably by Peter Cherrie, before substitute David Bosnjak tried his luck from distance—again without troubling the veteran keeper.
The defeat will frustrate Mick McDermott, whose team defended bravely for long spells but lacked the cutting edge going forward. Dundalk, meanwhile, march on with momentum firmly behind them, seven points clear at the top and showing no signs of slowing.
Lineups:
Dundalk: Cherrie; O’Keeffe, Animasahun (McHale HT), Leonard, Keogh; Dervin, Groome (Paraschiv 71); Kenny (Arubi 85), Gaxha, Horgan; Ebbe (Ward 71).
Cobh Ramblers: Martin; Evers, Coleman, Hakkinen, O’Donovan (Bosnjak 75); Bargary, Holland (Nunn 75), O’Keeffe, Le Bervet; Griffin; Coffey.
Referee: Aaron O’Dowd
Next Up:
Dundalk will look to continue their remarkable run when they travel to face Bray Wanderers next week, while Cobh return to St. Colman’s Park to take on Wexford in search of a much-needed bounce-back result.
