The Commentary Box: Dundalk could not get the winner they deserved

Dundalk threw away two precious points at Oriel Park on Friday night, when they were held to a three-all draw by Kerry FC. The game had six goals, and to some, it was an exciting one.

But when looked at clinically, Dundalk might as well have handed the lost two points to Kerry, such was the very poor defending and the terrible lack of concentration that was clear to be seen.

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Yes, there was the poor display of refereeing by referee Lucas Keating, who denied Dundalk two stonewall penalties, one early, the other late in the game. But all in all, Dundalk can only have themselves to blame for this result.

It was shocking to see the Oriel Park side level each time when they were behind, only to go behind again within two minutes.

Ciaran Kilduff was booked by the referee out of frustration at some of the referee's decisions that should have gone to Dundalk.

The usually very mild-mannered Dundalk boss rightfully protested when some very bad decisions were made throughout the game against Dundalk. But Dundalk can not blame the referee for this result.

It was their own fault for not holding on to a draw, having worked hard to get the game back to level terms three times. Goalkeeper Enda Minogue also had a poor game.

So much so that I believe manager Ciaran Kilduff has no choice but to restore veteran Peter Cherrie to the goals. Managers must be ruthless. And Kilduff must be ruthless in this case.

Most will say that Enda is a good keeper. I agree with that. He has been in a lot of games. But he has been below par in others. On Friday, Enda was well below par.

The defence were at fault for the three goals. But so was Enda. It was his worst game since he arrived at Oriel. But with just seven games to go until the end of the season, Ciaran Kilduff needs a steadier pair of hands in goals than Enda had on Friday.

I would bring Peter Cherrie in for the next few games. It's a no-brainer for the manager and his staff. There were two men of the match for Dundalk as far as I was concerned.

One was Daryl Horgan, who scored twice to haul the home team back into the game. The other was Keith Ward. Brought on as a substitute at the start of the second half.

He just rolled back the years as he has done so on a number of occasions this season. He set Horgan up for his second goal early in the second half.

Then he got Dundalk's equaliser by kneeing a lob in the box on 63 minutes past the Kerry keeper, Mathew O'Connor. It was a superb goal, the way it was executed.

Most in the ground thought Dundalk would have gone on to win the game. But that was to be the last goal. It resulted in Cobh cutting Dundalk's lead at the top to just six points.

They beat Athlone three-nil in a facile win. Dundalk have some very difficult fixtures coming up. They must play Wexford away and then Bray at home. They also have both UCD and Finn Harps at home, as well as  Athlone and Longford away.

Then it's Cobh in the last game at Saint Coleman's Park in Cobh. That game could be the one that decides who wins Division One. Wexford away next week will be very difficult.

Dundalk will be without Vinny Leonard, Eoin Kenny, Sean Spaight and  Luke Mulligan. All of these players have been called up for underage international teams.

Sean Spaight has only played in a handful of games for Dundalk this season. But there is no doubt Dundalk could have been doing with him next week. Vinny Leonard and Eoin Kenny will be badly missed.

I can't really see how Dundalk can function without them. Eoin had a superb game on Friday night. He has been called up for the North's under-21 team. It's a great recognition for him at how well he has been doing at Dundalk this season.

He was top class on Friday night. I am delighted for Vinny Leonard getting his call-up, while Luke Mulligan has also done so well to get a call-up.

Normally, when a team is depleted as a result of their players getting called up for international duty, their game is postponed. But this is the FAI we are talking about.

Premier Division games are all off for next weekend as a result of it being international game time. The first Division must continue as normal. And even clubs who have players away on international duty can not get their games called off.

There are many teams in the Premier Division who have no players away on international duty. Yet they are off. Dundalk have four players away and can not get their games off.

Ciaran Kilduff says it is a disgrace that Dundalk must go to Wexford without the players who are on international duty.

"We must go down to the southeast without these key players. We wrote to the league the last time the same thing happened. I do not think we got a reply. Sean Spaight got a call-up this morning, Friday.

"I think that this is because Vinny is no longer playing for the Republic of Ireland under-17s. The rules and regulations are so unfair against First Division teams. There is nothing I can do.

"But it is so frustrating. Seemingly, First Division clubs voted in favour of not having games postponed, even if their players are away on international duty. This was a few years ago.

"The Ireland team should not feel guilty for taking the players. But I should not be going to Wexford without four key players either. Eoin Kenny and Vinny Leonard started tonight.

"They are now gone for 12 days. There is nothing we can do about it. The rule makes no sense. And nobody seems to want to make a decision on us losing the players.

"We just have to get on with it. What do you want me to do about it seems to be the feeling I am getting. That seems to be the headline I am getting tonight.

"Dundalk having to go to Wexford without four key players in the run-in for the First Division title is a disgrace. It is putting Dundalk's chances of getting automatic promotion in serious danger.

"I hope that the powers that be in Oriel at be are doing all they can to get a postponement. No doubt they are shouting from the rooftops in the corridors of power at Abbotstown about this mess.

"The Dublin media are not giving this any attention at all. But if it was Shamrock Rovers, Derry City or Shelbourne that were affected, they would be.

"The rule that Premier Division clubs get a complete break while First Division clubs must play is a joke. It may be that this is what First Division clubs voted for years ago. But this is now.

"The FAI should make the rule themselves that there be equal treatment for Premier Division clubs and First Division Clubs on this issue.

"It's an utter mess. Dundalk, in particular, are being discriminated against. I call on the FAI to postpone Saturday's game."

Bray at home the following week will be so difficult. They beat Dundalk emphatically at the Carlisle Grounds, the last time teams clashed. Dundalk dominated the game.

But they could not take their chances. Had they taken the chances, Dundalk would have won. Dundalk also have in-form UCD and Finn Harps to play at Oriel.UCD beat Bray in a thriller on Friday.

They have a great chance of making the playoffs. They will cause Dundalk a lot of problems at Oriel. The most in-form team in Division One is Finn Harps. They had another great win on Friday night at home.

They will also come to Oriel right in the hunt for a play-off place. Then there is the last game of the season. As Ciaran Kilduff has said.

If Cobh are just within three points of Dundalk going into that game, Cobh will have the Division One title and promotion in their own hands.

To me, none of the teams who emerge as the one who plays the second-from-bottom side in the Premier Division will have a chance of beating the higher-tier team.

Thus, as far as I am concerned, Dundalk must top the Division to ensure they will be back in the Premier Division next season. It's no reflection on Dundalk or the other First Division teams.

It's just that the gap in the standard between First and Premier Division is big. I believe it is too big for any of the first Division teams to overcome. I still think Dundalk will get the automatic promotion spot.

But as I said last week, sometimes when a team looks odds-on to win promotion, they can be caught. A chasing team can often develop great confidence in the run-in and catch the long-term leaders at the last hurdle if that team stumbles.

Dundalk stumbled on Friday. They can not afford to drop any more points needlessly in the way they did against Kerry. I was surprised that Conor O'Keeffe was not included in the Dundalk starting eleven.

But he may have been carrying an injury he picked up in the Treaty game the week before. Luke Mulligan was back in the side for the first time in five weeks.

He only returned to training earlier in the week; I thought he would have been more effective coming on as a sub. He had a good game overall. But at times, he looked a bit uncertain.

He was caught out badly for one of the goals..Andy Paraschiv replaced Harry Groome at midfield. I had no problems with this selection. Harry has been struggling to regain his overall good form of late.

Paracshiv has had a good season and has played regularly for Dundalk. Kerry are a team on the up and have qualified for the quarter finals of the FAI Cup.

Colin Healy has his team playing some good football. There is no doubt that they can trouble any team. When Dundalk got their third goal, they had Kerry on the ropes for the rest of the game.

I was sure they would go on and win easily enough. But despite dominating, Dundalk just could not get the winner they deserved.

The Oriel Park side lined out as follows. Goals Enda Minogue. Right back Loke Mulligan, left back John Ross Wulson. Two centre halves, Vinny Leonard and Mayowa.Midfield consisted of Aodh Dervin and Daryl Horgan.

Eoin Kenny, Andy Paraschiv and Declan McDaid.The striker was  Gbemi Arubi. At the start of the second half, Conor O'Keffee, Keith Ward and Norman Garbett replaced Luke Mulligan, Mayowa and Andy Paraschiv.

Mayowa did play very well in the first half. But he was injured, and the Dundalk management team decided not to risk him in the second half. Gbemi Arubi had a really good game.

There was surprise among members of the local media that he was subbed on 55 minutes. But this was because he had taken a heavy challenge by a Kerry player. Eoin Kenny was replaced by Dean Ebbe with eleven minutes remaining.

Ebbe missed a great chance to win the game with 10 minutes remaining. Keith Ward put a great cross into him from the right. He shot straight into the arms of the Kerry keeper, Mathew Connor.

Dundalk were denied a stone wall penalty after just three minutes when Gemi Arubi was clearly held in the box and ended up on the ground. It was disgraceful to see the way Gbemi was held.

Referee Lucas Keating made the first of a series of mistakes that failed to go Dundalk's way. Gbemi had an effort saved by Mathew Connor on 17 minutes. Eoin Kenny had the ball in the net on 20 minutes.

It was disallowed for offside. Looking back at the replay, it seemed a certain goal. Kerry took the lead on 22 minutes when Ronan Teehan nipped into the box after Luke Mulligan failed to stop him.

Teehan found he had the goal in his sights. He blasted the ball through the legs of JR Wilson. Enda Minogue made a terrible mistake by letting the ball go in on his left side.

There were defenders at fault, who should never have let Teehan past them. But Enda had the chance to stop the shot. It should never have gone in.

Dundalk were back in the game four minutes from the break. Gbemi Arubi was in the clear for a certain goal. The Longford keeper took the Dundalk striker down in the box. Horgan made no mistake from the spot kick.

But just 60 seconds after being tied back to 1-1, Kerry went in front again. Ewan Lee got a good cross into the box. The Dundalk keeper should have cut the ball out.

Instead, the ball came to Cleary. He shot into the Dundalk net to put Kerry 2-1 ahead. Ciaran Kilduff's men had to go in at half-time knowing they were behind again after hauling themselves back into the game.

Ciaran Kilduff made three changes at the break. One of the three was Keith Ward, who shone above so many other players like a beacon of light.

There were only two minutes gone into the second half when Ward's cross found Daryl Horgan in the box. The Dundalk skipper got his fifth goal in two games as he headed Ward's cross to the net.

But Kerry dramatically led again on 50 minutes when Gavin Teehan's 25-yard shot caught Minogue on the hop and crashed to the net. It was a terrible goal to concede.

A great one-two pass between Daryl Horgan and Keith Ward saw Ward knee the ball over the head of the Kerry keeper to level the game. Gbemi Arubi had to come off on 68 minutes after the victim of a heavy tackle.

He was replaced by Rohan Vaughan. Dundalk had another stone wall penalty waved away on 73 minutes. Norman Garbett was hacked down in the box near the byline.

Manager Kieran Kilduff protested to the fourth official. He was wasting his time as the people in charge on Friday night were not going to give Dundalk anything.

Dean Ebbe had the last real chance of the game when he had the goal at his mercy. He shot weekly at Kerry keeper Connor. Kerry deserved their draw.

Dundalk were well below par. One of the players who has been doing so well since the window disappointed a bit. That was JR Wilson.

But I would not worry about JR. He is a class player. He is entitled to have one below par game now and again.
Ciaran Kilduff says he is so disappointed and frustrated. But so are the players.

"The objective was to win the game. But we failed to do that. We spent a lot of the game chasing it. We fell behind and equalised three times. That is unacceptable. The goals we gave away were really poor.

"I was very disappointed with the way things went in the first half. That's why I had to make three substitutions at halftime. At least one of the players had an injury. So the substitutions were not all tactical.

"We needed to react to what was happening on the pitch. The last time we played Kerry here, I had to react and play three subs at the start of the second half, also.

"So it is very disappointing. I do not think tonight's result was due to any complacency. They are not that kind of a group. But it is most certainly not a concentration or a focus thing.

"Every time we equalised, I  was sure we would go on and win the game. A few weeks ago, we went 1-0 down against Athlone here in Oriel. But we went on to win the game 6-1."

I suggested to the manager that Enda Minogue did not have the best of games

"Yes, that's right for sure, and he knows himself. The home truths are with him. He put his hand up and took the accountability. I am sure Enda is frustrated too. It is the life of a goalkeeper."

I asked the manager if he would now have to have a rethink about bringing Peter Cherrie back into the first team.

"I will not be making emotional decisions tonight or tomorrow night. I will think it over and talk to my staff about the matter."

Asked on the performance of the referee, the manager said that his staff reviewed the video of Eoin Kenny's disallowed goal. They told me it was onside. I got myself booked for questioning the performance of the officials.

It's not going to get me anywhere. The referee said nothing to me. The fourth official asked me what did I want him to do about it. If that's the attitude, it does not give you much options. .

I do know that match officials have a tough job. But it is frustrating when some decisions go against you. It is frustrating we did not win. But look, it's not about the referee as far as the result is concerned.

He is not an excuse. We conceded three really poor goals. Maybe that is why we are bemoaning the small decisions. Gbemi was not injured during the game. Mayowa got a knock to the head in the first half.

That is why we replaced him at halftime. We will have to assess Mayowa and see how he is. Luke Mulligan has only trained once in the last four weeks.

We have to wrap him up, too. He was probably thrown in at the deep end. We had a setback with Conor O'Keeffe during the week. He was only fit for half a game.

"We scored three goals and conceded three in a game we are expected to win. We were working hard up front, and it was hard to get ourselves in front. We have scored a lot of goals in recent weeks.

"Unfortunately, even though we got three tonight, we also conceded three. We are now just six points clear after Cobh getting their win. I have said it all along. They only need to be behind us by three going into the last game, and it's all in their hands.

"But we have to keep calm, we know that. We are facing into six difficult games before we can even give the last game of the season against Cobh, any thought."

Captain Daryl Horgan says he felt fairly disappointed after the game ended in a draw.

"We shot ourselves in the foot, really. The game was there for us to win. Ultimately, we gave away poor goals. We had to come back three times to keep ourselves in the game. I was disappointed with all three goals that we conceded.

"It's something we want to learn from. It's still a quite young group. There are going to be moments where it does not go all our way. We did show the resolve to get the goals back and pick up a point in the end.

"The game changed when we got it back to three all. They just dropped back into a certain shape. We had to put bodies on the line as they blocked our pressure. We had some good moments in their box.

"We just needed to put one away. Nobody from our end is going to blame the referee or his officials for the result. It was our fault. They made the decisions they saw. That's fair enough. They are out there trying their absolute best as well.

"If I was honest, it had nothing to do with referees. We should have seen that game out. We should have picked up the three points. Right now, I am not looking forward to the Wexford game next Friday.

"It will take a little bit of time to get over this game. We have to get a clearer picture as to how this game went the way it did and why it did. After the game, it always feels raw. We will get in and recover tomorrow.

"After Saturday, it will be all guns blazing for Wexford when we get back into Oriel on Monday. I do not really care about the fact that I have scored five goals in the past two games.

"All I care about is getting the points from a win. It's the three points from a win that matters. We need to get them in every game to help get us over the line.

"Keith Ward was excellent when he came on. It could have been any of the eleven players that the manager took off at halftime. But Keith had such an impact when he came on as a sub at the start of the second half.

"He had an immediate impact. His finish for the third goal was excellent. He kneed it straight over the keeper. It was a top-class goal. It was a great finish. Keith was excellent for the entire second half.

"He got on the ball really well and just tried to play and be as creative as possible. And he was. We do have to lift ourselves after this. It was never going to be a cake walk or a walk in the park.

"There are always going to be peaks and troughs. If you take your foot off the pedal and drop points, you lose games.

"Thankfully, we had the resolve tonight and come back three times and at least get a point. We wanted all three. It was in our hands to get all three.

"Wexford are always a very difficult team to play both away and at home. They are well organised and have a very good manager. They are fighting for the playoff places.

"It will be a very, very difficult game at Ferrycarrig Park next Friday. We know that. There are no easy games. The only easy ones are when the opposition have an off night and we really apply ourselves.

"Last week, Treaty had a bad night, and we really applied ourselves. If you are not at the levels you are supposed to be at, then you will really run into trouble.

"On Bray the following week, they are not on our radar and will not be until after our game with Wexford."

There were over 1,600 people in attendance at the game. This is very good, considering Kerry only took at a maximum of 20 supporters with them. Their manager, Colin Healy, has them so well organised.

On Friday week, they are at home to Sligo Rovers in the quarter final. Well, a warning to all my friends in the north-west. You better be well prepared for the game because Kerry will cause you a lot of problems.

The maximum capacity of Mounthawk Park is only 1,200. It is a beautiful and well-equipped stadium. It has three fine astro turf or synthetic turf pitches. Two are for Training. One is for the main stadium. They are all quality surfaces.

I had a very good Dundalk supporter sitting beside me at the game on Friday in Oriel. Mick Doohan won the League title for Dundalk with his goal, along with Tom McNulty's, against Galway way back in 1995, on the final day of the season.

Derry just needed a point to clinch the title. They were beaten by already relegated Athlone Town at St Mells Park. It was a shock. Had Shelbourne won their game, with Derry losing, they would have won the title.

But Dermot Keely's side stole it all from under them with a two-nil win at Oriel. Only 1600 supporters turned out. That was because nobody gave Dundalk a chance of lifting the title. But they did.

I remember there was still 10 minutes left in the Derry v Athlone game when the Dundalk game finished. The crowd all gathered on the pitch.

I plugged my radio into the Oriel sound system so that the last minutes of the game could be heard by everybody. We were listening to the dulcet tones of RTE's Gabriel Egan's voice all over Oriel, bringing us the action.

Oriel Park went wild when the final whistle blew. I remember the late Nicky Coffey celebrating and Enda McGuill celebrating as well. That's apart from the players and supporters.

It was a great achievement by Dermot Kelly, seeing as the club had a change in ownership in November 1994. To win the league seven months later was a magnificent achievement.

Mick Doohan often comes down to Oriel to support Dundalk. He was there with his wife, and both thoroughly enjoyed the game. He gets the Belfast train in Dublin, which gets him to Dundalk at 6.45.

He and his wife get something to eat. They pay for their ticket and sit and watch Ciaran Kilduff's team. He says he loves coming back to Oriel each time. Nobody recognises they have a Lilywhite legend among them.

What amazed me was that not one reporter in the press box recognised him. Well, I did and will never forget him. Mick arrived at Oriel in July 1993 and was signed by Turlough O'Connor.

Turlough departed Oriel in October 1993. When he left, Dermot Keely and Jim McLaughlin applied for the job. McLaughlin was the strong favourite.

So much so that at least one newspaper chanced their arm and said that the Derry man was the new manager. They did this knowing the meeting to decide between Keely and McLaughlin was being held on the Monday night, hours after their print deadline was up.

The headline the next day had a back page headline 'Midas Jim set to return'. Personally, I wanted Jim back. I could not believe it when I heard it was Dermot Keely who got the job.

You have to remember this was done in the days before the Internet. Also, almost all papers will chance their arms when it looks certain that the favourite candidate will get the job.

Little did people know that there was a vote among the directors at the time on Keely and McLaughlin.It was a tied or split decision vote.

Then chairman Eamonn Hiney went with Dermot, and he was announced boss just before midnight that Monday night.

Mick Doohan made 163 appearances for Dundalk in the league, 12 in the FAI Cup, two European games, two Leinster Cup games,22 League Cup games, three Leinster Cup games and three other games.

In all, Doohan has played 204 games for Dundalk. He scored 19 league goals for Dundalk and 26 goals in total. Mick was a centre half by trade. But Dermot Keely quite often used him as a centre forward.

He used him as a centre forward in the second half of the game against Galway on the final day of the season in 1995. Mick got one of the two goals that clinched the game for Dundalk.

Mick will keep coming back to Dundalk as a spectator with his wife. He says it is a great night's entertainment and likes the management style of Ciaran Kilduff. Mick is an accountant by trade.

By the way, he was really impressed with young Norman Garbett. He says Norman is a great prospect. He was full of praise for the young man when I told him Norman had come from New Zealand to play soccer.

I watched the Dundalk -Kerry game back on LOITV on Friday night. You can see a lot more of what is actually happening by watching the game back on TV.

I noticed that the Astro Turf pitch seemed to be causing difficulty for players to control the ball at times, as it bounced strangely. The match commentators briefly mentioned the pitch, but did not go into any details about it.

They were right to do that. As far as I know, there will not be a new astro turf pitch laid at the end of the season. I thought there would be. The pitch was laid in January 2017.

To me, it's time for a new one to be installed. It's easy for me to say. Cost comes into it, of course. We shall wait to see if a new pitch will be installed.

The death took place in midweek of Olly Horgan. The entire League of Ireland soccer world was shaken to its core. Olly is famous for his management career with Finn Harps.

He joined the Donegal side in November 2013 and was there until November 2022. He moved to Galway United as assistant boss in 2023.

He worked alongside manager John Caulfield. The pair did a great job getting Galway promoted to the Premier Division for 2024.

Olly was only on sick leave for about a month before he passed away. I was not surprised at the suddenness of his death, as I was aware of the condition that had hit him.

A neighbour of mine died from the same condition again after only a very short time. Olly was only 57. He was born in Galway on 17th February 1967 in Salthill, Galway.

He managed the Donegal junior team, Fanad United, from 2007 to 2013. On the same dates, he was also manager of the Republic of Ireland schoolboys team.

Olly was a PE teacher at St Eunan's College in Letterkenny, Donegal. He was a pianist and originally from Galway. He loved the music of Bach and Beethoven. Olly was one of the most passionate people the League of Ireland ever saw.

I remember arriving at Finn Park, Ballybofey, three years ago. I saw somebody cutting the grass on the pitch. It was Olly. He did confront an issue on and off the pitch, which he disagreed with.

He regularly clashed with match officials on the many wrong decisions League of Ireland referees make. He was protecting his team. He got sent off for speaking to the referees for their wrong decisions.

Olly was a very charismatic manager. He was known countrywide. There was a minute's applause for Olly before the Dundalk-Kerry game on Friday night, as there was at all games over the weekend.

Dundalk vice-captain Aodh Dervin got a two-year extension on his contract last week. Great to see Aodh remain at Oriel for the years to come.

It's hard to think it's nearly a year since Dundalk went out of football. I wonder will any media outlets be looking back at that period.

I believe enough has been written about it. It was a dark period in the club's history. Better to look forward than to look back. Have a great week. Please look after each other and remember to be careful out there.