Horgan injury cloud hangs over Dundalk ahead of Bray clash

Dundalk FC face the prospect of lining out without captain and talisman Daryl Horgan for Friday night’s pivotal SSE Airtricity League First Division clash with Bray Wanderers at Oriel Park (kick-off, 7:45pm).

Horgan, the league leaders’ top scorer with 10 goals and 10 assists in 30 appearances, and the ever-present heartbeat of the side with more minutes played than any of his teammates this season, was forced off with a calf injury during the scoreless draw away to Wexford.

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The 33-year-old cut a frustrated figure as he limped from the pitch before the hour mark and was still moving gingerly when the squad departed Ferrycarrig Park, prompting manager Ciaran Kilduff to voice his concern in the aftermath.

“It’s his calf. He did say at half-time it was flaring up,” Kilduff told The Democrat. “He didn’t train one of the days during the week with it, but I’m just hoping it settles down for him now.

“It’s not like him to come off,” he continued, when pressed on whether his captain might face a spell on the sidelines. “He would’ve stayed out there if he could, so I’m sure we’re dealing with something, but I also know what Daryl is like. He’ll do everything right to give himself every chance.”

The Lilywhites were also forced to do without goalkeeper Enda Minogue from the outset against Wexford, though the former Bray man is expected to return in time to face his old club.

“It’s a flare-up of his finger from the last time when he broke it,” confirmed Kilduff. “It’s nothing too major, but it was the right call to leave him out. He should be (available), but we have to assess him. He did the warm-up with the keepers, but we’ll assess him as the week goes on.”

While Sean McHale and Leo Gaxha continue their spells on the Oriel treatment table, Vinnie Leonard, Eoin Kenny, and Sean Spaight are on the road back from international duty, though they will not rejoin the Dundalk squad until Thursday—just a day before Bray’s visit.

However, a contentious caution for ‘charging’ issued to Mayowa Animasahun in the Wexford clash has left both him and Aodh Dervin treading a disciplinary tightrope, with their next yellow card triggering a one-match suspension.

Animasahun, along with Conor O’Keeffe, Luke Mulligan, and Shane Tracey, are all nursing knocks as Dundalk head into the final six fixtures of the campaign.

“Lads are carrying niggles,” said Kilduff. “We’re at that point of the season. We don’t have our full squad. We have to force lads to play through, and in fairness to them, anyone who played there (against Wexford), there’s no question about their mindset of wanting to help and play, but that’s where we’re at.”

Bray make the trip to Oriel on Friday occupying third place in the table, 10 points shy of Dundalk, who enjoy a six-point cushion over nearest challengers Cobh Ramblers—themselves in action at home to Treaty United that same evening.

The Seagulls have not claimed victory in Dundalk since 2017, yet they remain one of only two First Division sides to have toppled The Lilywhites this season.

Dundalk, meanwhile, boasts an unblemished home record in the league in 2025, their fortress standing firm across 15 successive matches.

Their most recent outing, however, ended in frustration: a scoreless stalemate away to Wexford, a result that denied them the chance to widen their advantage at the summit, with Cobh themselves held to a 1-1 draw in Kerry on the same night.

“I just feel there was a missed opportunity,” bemoaned Kilduff. “It didn’t really matter what happened elsewhere to me. We didn’t win, and our objective was to win.

“When you come in afterwards, it’s a small, slight consolation that the gap at the top wasn’t closed, but the gap at the top should have been stretched.

“We’re not really worried about anyone else, but we have a big game next week: a team that we’ve played three times. We’ve beaten them once, drawn with them once, and they’ve beaten us once, so it’s all to play for next week.”