The next two weeks has a huge bearing on Dundalk's season

It was a sad night in many ways last Thursday, as Dundalk fans said goodbye to on-loan centre half Zak Johnson at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin. Dundalk lost the game by a single goal to champions Shamrock Rovers.

That left them just two points clear of fierce local rivals Drogheda United who are at present in the automatic relegation zone. On Friday Dundalk will clash with Drogheda in a crunch relegation battle at Oriel Park. It will be the fourth time the sides have met this season.

Drogheda have won two of the games, one in the league, the other in the Malone Cup. The third game was a scoreless draw in Oriel Park in the league.

On Friday Drogheda did so well to hold league leaders Shelbourne to a one-all draw. This brought them to within just two points of Dundalk in the play-off zone.

Dundalk had done well of late in the league. But two defeats in a row, now means they are back big time in an effort to avoid the automatic drop spot.

The loss of left-back Zak Bradshaw three weeks ago has already weakened the Dundalk defence. The departure of Zak Johnson is a massive blow.

He had begun to develop a strong partnership with Andy Boyle in the centre of the defence in recent times. The loss of Andy Boyle through injury has been a huge blow. He will get another scan this week to look at the extent of his injury. He could be out for another two weeks.

Zak Bradshaw flew out of Dublin Airport early on Thursday morning with Aer Lingus to return to Sunderland. His father took his 19-year-old son back to his home city of Sunderland.

Zak returns home with many fond memories. He will also be remembered by Dundalk fans for a long time to come as being one of the best centre-halves to play for the club in quite a while.

Zak was the last Dundalk player to leave the pitch at the Tallaght Stadium last Thursday, as he said his goodbyes to the 200 travelling fans. Back home for five days now, the former centre-back is contemplating his future.

He is not sure whether he will be sent out on loan again or will be allowed to fight for a place in the first team. The loss of Johnson, Bradshaw, Boyle and the imminent expected departure of Archie Davis will leave Dundalk without the four key players who could keep them up Andy Boyle will return.

New signing Bobby Faulkner had a good game on his debut at the heart of the defence against Shamrock Rovers. Youngster Sean Keogh was also immense at the back. Thus maybe things might not be as bad as I fear.

But without the defenders who have formed such a bulwark against other teams in recent times, I think Dundalk are very vulnerable. Last weekend I heard from a very good source that Zak would be loaned straight back out to League 1 side Carlisle United or Conference team Gateshead.

Zak said he did not think he would be going to a conference team. “I do not think I will be going back to a conference team. I think that there are clubs who are interested in me from higher divisions than that.

This is the reason I am returning to Sunderland. There are clubs after me that are in higher divisions than this league. That is the main reason why I am going back.

If it was the conference league that was on offer there would be no need for me to move. I am not too sure of any clubs at the minute”. When asked about a move to Carlisle, Zak said that if any club comes in for him and Sunderland believe it's the best option for him then ultimately that's where he will go. Obviously, he is talking about playing in a higher division than the League of Ireland.

“I have not heard anything from Carlisle. Ultimately my goal is to play in the Championship for Sunderland. I am confident that this will happen at some stage.

The main reason why I came to Dundalk was to test myself and see if I can play at a higher level. I believe that the Championship in England is that at the minute.

If that does not happen then I will look elsewhere. If news on who I am being linked with is not coming from me or the club directly then I really do not know what to believe.

It was not clear in my mind that I was returning to Sunderland until after the break. The first person who I let know was the gaffer. He deserves to know first.

So it was only after the break that Sunderland decided to recall me. Before the break, things were coming out that I was staying or that I was going. There were a lot of mixed emotions about that. But I had no idea what was happening.

“If there are no clubs interested in me when I return at a higher level than the League of Ireland then I would of course come back to Dundak if they would have me.

But if there is a chance for me to play at a higher level then that is what I will be doing. I have a little bit of control in where I go to next. If there are multiple clubs interested, then it would be my decision.

If Sunderland believes that such an option is best for me then I will go with that decision. They know what is best in the development of a player. I just want to play at the highest level”.

At the time of the interview Zak had yet to talk to the new Sunderland boss Jon Daly has said that he has been on to Sunderland about Zak. “The feedback that I am getting is that he will not be returning to Dundalk for the second half of the season.

I will keep asking the question until I get a firm no. I have to plan without him and have to try to get people that can help the team. We can not hold back on things in the hope that Zak returns. He has made it clear to me that he is looking for the next step which will further develop his career”.

It's my opinion that Zak will not be back. There are clubs who are interested in him that he feels can help develop him at a higher level. Zak won't entertain playing in the Conference league.

But with reports that Carlisle are interested in him, he will look at that as a further chance to help his development. He has been a great leader. Wherever he ends up in the UK he will be a success.

On Archie Davies, the manager says that players are always linked to other clubs. “Archie has no interest in moving to any other club in Ireland. If he does go it will be to the UK.

It's going to have to be a price that works for everyone. We do not want to lose Archie. Obviously, football is a business at the end of the day. My job will be to go and find the next Archie Davies.

There is no doubt that there are many more players like Archie Davies. It's just my job to go and get them. I am very switched on to the fact that if somebody comes in with the right money, Archie is going to go.

I have got somebody in mind to replace Archie if he does go. We have got targets there. As regards Archie, I have probably had more talks with Archie's agent than my wife in recent weeks.

I know where Archie and his agent stand. I also know where the club stands as well. We do not want to lose him. From a club perspective, we have yet to receive a good enough offer that would see the club letting him go”.

The manager said that he would be bringing in at least three or four new players. They will in my opinion have to strengthen the defence. They will need to sign a keeper.

Jamie Gullen is expected to play a part sometime in Friday's local derby against Drogheda at Oriel on Friday. The manager was happy with the new players that came in on Friday.

Bobby Faulkner did very well at centre-back. Jad Hakiki also had a good game. The manager was very happy with his substitutes Scott McGill and Norman Garbett.

Both Scott and Norman Garbett really opened up the Rovers defence in the last 15 minutes. The scintillating runs of Norman finally unlocked the Rovers defence and gave Dundalk a couple of chances to grab a point. It's amazing to think that this was Rovers first home game in 40 days.

It was only their third win in 10 games. Next Thursday they take on Icelandic Champions Vikingur Reykjavik at home. They will get a small break from the league while they begin their European exploits.

Tallaght Stadium looked really well on Thursday night. The new stand in the Stadium looked fantastic. It really added to the occasion. It's what all League of Ireland facilities should be like. But that is a fantasy and will never happen in my lifetime.

In truth, it was a poor and dour game. Rovers deservingly got the all-important winner when Sligo man Johnny Kenny fired home from just inside the box. Hakik, a new signing for Dundalk played out on the wing.

But he like other Dundalk players, just failed to make an impact. John Mountney and Robbie Benson were their usual good selves and played their hearts out. Cameron Elliott replaced Eoin Kenny on 57 minutes.

New signing Scott Magill replaced Robbie Benson ten minutes later. Ryan O'Kane replaced Jaid Hakkiki on 67 minutes also. The move of the game came on 81 minutes when new signing Norman Garbett replaced John Mountney.

Garbett was magnificent. He caused all sorts of problems for the Rovers defence. Dundalk won their first corner of the game on 83 minutes. They nearly scored on 85 minutes when Sean Keogh played a great ball out on the wing to Ryan O'Kane.

The ball fell to his left foot which is his weaker one. He pulled the trigger. It looked as though it was going to be an equaliser. The supporters in the stadium held their breath.

The shot beat the keeper but crashed agonisingly into the side netting. Ryan opened up the Rovers defence as well on a couple of occasions. He caused them many problems. Cameron Elliott for once was very lively. The striker has only scored just one goal in a season and a half.

Two minutes from time Cameron nearly answered his critics. A cross into the box saw Elliott stretch himself as far as he could with a bullet-like diving header.

Somehow Rovers keeper Leon Polis was able to push the ball away to safety. It just skimmed the upright. It was just not Dundalk's night. The word came through late in the game that Drogheda had pulled a goal back against Shelbourne to grab a point. They are now just two points behind Dundalk.

Drogheda seemed to have signed well in the window judging at first glance. The next two weeks has a huge bearing on Dundalk's season. The league game on Friday night at Oriel is by far the most important one.

If Dundalk were to get the win, it would leave them five points clear of their arch-rivals. A draw would be better than nothing. A defeat would be a disaster. It would send Dundalk back into the automatic relegation place.

The goals have dried up again for Dundalk. They have scored only once in three games. They have also lost their last two. I would love to see Jon Daly get a good cup run and beat Drogheda at Weavers Park on Friday week. But I would much prefer a win on Friday.

The stats from Thursday's game are interesting. Shamrock Rovers enjoyed 60 per cent possession to Dundalk's forty. Rovers had seven shots on target to Dundalk's two.

The Hoops had four shots off target to Dundalk's nine. Rovers and Dundalk both had four corners each. Dundalk's first came on 83 minutes. There were eight yellow cards handed out, four to each side.

The Rovers keeper made two saves while Ross Munro took off six. He performed well enough on Thursday. But he is still prone to making mistakes. He can not do that next Friday. Nor can any player.

I was very surprised that the manager left Ryan O'Kane out of the first 11 on Thursday. He made an immediate impact when he came on midway through the second half.

Ryan told me after the game that he felt Dundalkshould have got something out of the game. It was not easy for Ryan to do an interview after a defeat. I could see the disappointment etched all over his face.

This young player gives 100%. He hurts when Dundalk do not get a result. Over the years I have interviewed many players. Most have cared about results. But some may not be as disappointed after a defeat as one might expect.

“We should have won that game. We were the better team. We were unlucky not to score at the end. We gave it our all. But we just came up short. I tried to cause Rovers a lot more problems down the left wing.

But I also missed a good chance. We just have to go again next week. Drogheda drawing with Shelbourne increases the pressure. We will just have to work hard and ensure we beat Drogheda at Oriel.

I probably should have scored when I was put clear near the end of the game. But there is no point dwelling on it. I just have to move on. We were very unlucky not to equalise when Cameron Elliot's effort nearly went in.

The Rovers keeper took off a great save. I thought the keeper might have parried it in. Instead, he pushed it out to safety. We were very unlucky. not to score. Overall, we had a lot of chances.

We just could not find the net. Not many teams come to Tallaght Stadium and pin Rovers back in their own penalty area for the last twenty minutes of a game. We will just have to go again next Friday and hope we can get the three points”.

Drogheda United filed an application for the Large Scale Sports infrastructure fund two weeks ago. This is massive for all clubs as far as capital development is concerned.

I have no doubt that Dundalk would also have filed such an application. Funding for capital spending is so important. So much money needs to be spent on Oriel Park. That is an issue for me to discuss for another day.

Former Dundalk player Mark Griffin has been appointed First Team Coach at Newry City. Mark was also a coach of the Academy team at Oriel until recently.

He certainly faces a big challenge at Newry who are a club with enormous potential. They had a very poor season last year and were relegated. Mark has to get down to work straight away as the new season in the Irish League First Division is about six weeks away. I wish Mark all the very best.

It will be very interesting to see who Jon Daly brings in this week as he signs his last few players of the transfer window. One player who will not be returning is Zak Johnson.

He has been recalled by Sunderland for a reason. They will either keep him at the Stadium of Light and allow him to fight his way into the first team. Or he will be loaned out again.

This time it will be to a club who they feel are at a higher standard than the League of Ireland. Zak has little say on who he will be loaned out to. It could be Carlisle United who are in League One who he was linked to last week the former Dundalk centre half had not heard anything of being linked to any club last Thursday.

But at that stage, he had yet to speak to the new Sunderland manager. I am sure he will hear soon. One club he will not be going to is Conference side Gateshead.

He was linked to them last week also. But Zak said he would not be going there as they were not at a higher level in comparison to the League of Ireland. He told me he would be better staying at Dundalk than being let out to a conference side.

It's a big week. Let's hope the Lilywhites beat Drogheda next Friday. Have a great week. Look after each other and please remember to be careful out there.