Kilduff admits Dundalk are in ‘the hardest moment’ of his management career
The Lilywhites boss admits they are in a challenging period after Friday night’s late defeat to Shelbourne.
A run of one win in their last 11 SSE Airtricity League Premier Division games has left Dundalk FC’s hopes of a top-four finish hanging by a thread, with Ciaran Kilduff admitting his side are facing their most difficult period of the season after Friday night’s late defeat to Shelbourne.
Speaking with the Dundalk Democrat afterwards, Kilduff said he was “devastated” by the 3-2 loss, which saw Dundalk surrender a lead for the second time before Sean Boyd’s 90th-minute winner.
The defeat came just four days after a 4-0 loss to St Patrick’s Athletic and leaves Dundalk outside the top four with only four games remaining. Their problems have also been compounded by injuries and another red card, with Shane Tracey’s dismissal against Shelbourne their seventh of the campaign – the most of any team across the League of Ireland’s Premier and First Divisions.
Many of those dismissals have proved contentious, and Kilduff was particularly frustrated by Tracey’s red card.
“I’m sick of it at this point. I don’t know how many red cards we’ve had this year. He didn’t even hesitate, didn’t wait, just red card. It had to be. That obviously kills us in the end, but that was a tough night for the group, really tough.”
With four games remaining and both Trevor Clarke and JR Wilson forced off injured against Shelbourne, Kilduff acknowledged the scale of the challenge facing his side.
“That hurt, but we have to get better, though. Monday was terrible, awful. Tonight was better, but overall this whole period we’re in now, we have to reflect and do more and do better.
“The group are thin, only four games left. We were getting JR and Trevor back. Now they’re both gone again. So now we’re back to the drawing board a little bit and just getting bodies on the pitch because we have to try and get out of this at the minute.
“The group are devastated in there and it’s a hard one. It’s the hardest moment I’ve had in management to come in after that on the back of the run. It wouldn’t have been a bad point in the end with 10, but to come away with nothing is devastating.”
Defensive frailties have been a recurring problem throughout the campaign, and Dundalk have now conceded 53 goals, one fewer than bottom side Sligo Rovers.
Kilduff accepted that the numbers make criticism of the defence difficult to dispute, while pointing to the disruption caused by injuries and the demands being placed on his squad.
“It’s hard to argue with that with the amount of goals we’re giving up. So many moving parts. Mayowa (Animasahun) couldn’t play Monday and you throw him in for 95 tonight. It’s been really difficult. It’s been our Achilles’ heel all year. We’ve given up too many goals. We just look shaky.”
The Dundalk manager was keen, however, to stress that responsibility for the team’s defensive record cannot be placed on individual players.
“We defend as a team the same way we score as a team. I’m not the manager who’s going to come out and throw anybody under a bus. I’m going to defend my players to the end, as hard as it is tonight.
“Tonight was a difficult night. It’s not on one player or any one decision, but the one in 11 that we’re talking about, that’s a fair argument. You can have an argument of many people in that, myself included. We have to own that stat.”
Dundalk have also surrendered a significant number of points from winning positions this season, with 31 points now dropped after taking the lead.
For Kilduff, however, the immediate priority is to recover from a gruelling spell and prepare for the final four matches.
“We need to assess that last couple of weeks, the heartbreak of it all, just get back to work. There’s a lot of tired bodies in there. We’ve gone four games in 13 days.
“They’re devastated, they’re sore, they’re hurt. You can see the energy levels depleted. You can see the bench even not being able to be used. So we just need to really reflect now and just get back to work.
“There’s still four games to go. We’re a long way from home, but that one’s going to hurt for a few days.”
For all the focus on the defence, Kilduff again returned to the collective responsibility of a side that has struggled for consistency during the past couple of months.
“It hurts, but they’re a team. They’re not down to individuals. It’s not down to units where the defenders are to blame this week. And if we didn’t score last week, it’s the attackers.
“We defend and we attack as a team. All over, it’s not been good enough for the last couple of months.”