The Commentary Box: Dundalk were put to the sword against Shels

But Dundalk do not deserve to be in a possible European spot. This result means Dundalk have conceded 13 goals in their last four games. They have conceded 53 goals in the league, the joint worst in the Premier Division.

Counting the FAI Cup, Dundalk have conceded 58 goals in all competitions. They have only won one of their last 11 league games. And they have not won a league game at Oriel since May. It's a shocking record.

They remain seven points clear of the teams at risk of filling the play-off position. Had both won on Friday, then Dundalk would only be four points clear of the trouble zone.

The Oriel Park side were blessed that Waterford went down to a narrow defeat to champions Shamrock Rovers. Waterford led twice in the game. It was a late late show from Rovers, and they got the points.

Drogheda looked to be on their way to getting a point at Dalymount, against championship contenders Bohemians. The Drogs led 1-0 early in the game. Bohs levelled. But they only got the winner with a minute remaining from captain Dawson Devoy.

Drogheda were very unhappy about the goal being given. It looked offside all over. Once again the standard of refereeing let them down. Bohs got the points, and Drogheda remain joint second bottom with Waterford in the dreaded play-off zone.

Were Dundalk dragged into that zone and finish second from bottom, they would not win any play-off with the First Division team based on their play now. That's my view.

Drogheda have taken six points out of nine from 3 games. They are playing well. Waterford have been a revelation since Graham Coughlan took over. They were nine points behind Sligo and were rock bottom.

They went on an unbeaten 12-game run, which only ended on Friday with the defeat against Shamrock Rovers. Dundalk have the worst form in the league. Everything looked so good in May when they were beating all the top teams.

To be fair, manager Ciaran Kilduff warned supporters not to get carried away. And he was right. It's all gone wrong. Dundalk have totally imploded. They play Bohemians on Friday week in Oriel.

Then it's away to Sligo, away to Derry and a home game against Shamrock Rovers. Of those four games, maybe they will beat Sligo away. They will not beat Bohs, Shamrock Rovers or Derry City.

They have a 7-point lead on the two bottom two sides. They can be caught. I was amazed the amount of people around me in Oriel who were delighted that Waterford were beating Shamrock Rovers, and Drogheda beating Bohemians at one stage.

They did not seem to realise that had both teams won, Dundalk would be dragged right back in the play-off fight. I said to one supporter, did they not want Rovers to win. I said it would be a good result for Dundalk. They said no.

They did not want Rovers to win the league. Where do you go with a comment like that? If Dundalk were assured of their Premier Division status now, I would agree with them. But they are not.

And until then, I want to see Waterford and Drogheda to lose games.Dundalk's defence was very poor on Friday, particularly in the centre. Dundalk lost Trevor Clarke and JR Wilson with injuries in the first half; JR was a massive loss in the defence.

Trevor Clarke was a huge loss with Dundalk going forward. It's thought both players may miss the rest of the season. Ciaran Kilduff has been so unlucky with injuries this season.

I have never seen a year like it. I wonder if the artificial surface is contributing to the injuries. Shelbourne lost their keeper, Beach, in the first half through injury. Conor Walsh replaced him.

The game was played in pouring rain. Dundalk played against a very strong wind in the first half. Daryl Horgan was once again superb. Aodh Dervin was a major asset again and worked tirelessly for the team. He was like a beacon of light.

Ronan Teahan was top class, getting a great goal to put Dundalk ahead; Keith Buckley was disappointing. New striker Cian Dillon just never featured.

He has been a huge disappointment since he arrived after the window. Bobby Burns always looked solid at the back. But Mayowa at times looked shaky. He contributed to one of Shelbourne's goals.

Tom Grivosti did not have a good game either. His seeming lack of confidence put the Dundalk defence under pressure at times.Declan McDaid replaced Trevor Clarke with an injury on 27 minutes.

I thought McDaid did well. He got Dundalk's second goal. He did everything that could have been asked of him. Enda Minogue once again had a poor game. He could not be blamed for all of the three goals.

But his lack of confidence to come out for a ball is affecting the defence. He could not catch a simple cross at one stage in the game. He punched it over the bar. I saw a sports programme during the week.

The experts said for a team to be successful they must have a good keeper. Enda does not inspire any confidence in me. Of course one can not blame one player for a team's bad form.

But if you have an unreliable keeper, it sends earth tremors through a team. This is what has happened with the Dundalk keeper. To his credit, Ciaran Kilduff would not accept my opinion in a post-match interview.

He was adamant that Enda was a good keeper. And he said he would be keeping his place in the remaining games of the season.I think Kilduff has made a major mistake by keeping Enda in the first 11.

It's a mistake that might yet still return to haunt him. To be fair, many supporters do not agree with my opinion on Enda. I respect those opinions.But it's not just on the field where one wonders where the club is going.

A decision to allow Eoin Kenny to have a release clause of 40,000 euros in his contract was a major mistake. Dundalk should have insisted on a much higher figure.

If Eoin and his advisors were refusing a higher fee, then if it were me, I would not have signed him for Dundalk at the start of the season. Bad enough losing them when they did.

But losing him for 40,000 euro is unbelievable. Now this is the fee that has been publicly mentioned he went for. It's also being said that Gbemi Arubi only went for a fee of 56,000 euro. If this is true, it's ridiculous.

It's crazy. I have been told by a reliable source that these figures for Arubi and Kenny are accurate. Against that, I am told by another reliable source that they went for much higher figures.

If they went for 96,000 euros combined, it most certainly was not worthwhile losing them in mid-season. They should have been made see out the end of their contracts.

This is why I am saying it's vital the club come out and just clarify the correct figures for both. Everyone says the departure of Kenny and Arubi were the key reasons why the team has gone into such a decline. I simply do not agree.

I think Dundalk should have been able to carry on well enough instead of the awful implosion that has hit the team.Shelbourne went into the game not having won a game since they beat Dundalk in Tolka at the end of July.

They badly needed a win to get away from the play-off place. Dundalk were ahead on 12 minutes when Trevor Clarke put in a marvellous cross from the right.

Ronan Teahan rose high to head home, with the ball ending up in the bottom right-hand corner of the net. It was a superb goal. Shells lost their keeper, Beech, and Dundalk lost JR Wilson and Trevor Clark through injury.

Dundalk full-back Harvey Warren, who replaced JR Wilson, was caught out badly for the Shelbourne equaliser on 39 minutes. James Norris got in behind Warren on the left. His cross was not cleared well by Minogue.

The ball went straight to Daniel Kelly. His weak effort was turned into the net by Moore despite the presence of two Dundalk players on the line. They were Mayowa and Grivosti. One of these players should have cleared the ball to safety.

They could not do so.Dundalk took control of the game two minutes into the second half. Cian Dillon was replaced by Leo Gaxha on 70 minutes. A minute later Daryl Horgan's free was kept in by Gaxha.

The ball came to Harvey Warren. His cross from the byline was shot headed home by Declan McDaid. Dundalk could only hold the game for 10 minutes. Shelbourne piled on the pressure.

They levelled with nine minutes remaining. Jack Henry-Francis had a strong shot into the box. The ball was deflected into the net by Sean Boyd. Shane Tracey was only on the pitch for 11 minutes when he was judged to have fouled Henry Francis.

He got a straight red card for the foul.Shelbourne won the game on 90 minutes when Odhran Casey was given the freedom of Oriel. He got down the right with nobody challenging him. he got deep into Dundalk territory so easily.

His cross from the right found Sean Boyd totally unmarked. He headed the loose ball to the net with the Dundalk defence having been torn asunder. Mayowa was caught out badly.

As was Minogue.Dundalk were put to the sword. The defence had let them down. So badly.After the game, manager Ciaran Kilduff spoke to me at length.

“That winner they got at the end was just a sickener. When we lost JR and Trevor, the whole right side of our team was gone. A cross came in for their equaliser, with the ball ending up in the net.

“It was a matter of getting the lads in at half time to talk to them. We did well at the start of the second half and went ahead again. Then it was a matter of trying to move on. But they got a cross in as time went on and were able to score.

“Their winner came right on full time. The red card was a sickener and killed us. We made two changes in the second half, and under the new rules, we could not even stop and get a replacement on.”

I asked the manager where he goes from here. He said soul searching.

“Monday against Pats was awful. Tonight was a bit better. But we lost. We are going through a time of reflection. It was a matter of getting bodies back like JR and Trevor. Now we have lost them again.

“Now the players have to reflect. For me it's the hardest time I have had in my management career. It would not have been so hard to come away with a point.

“But to lose and come away with nothing is just basically awful. Things were looking better for long spells in the game. But then came their winning goals. It was so disappointing.”

I suggested to the manager that the defence was shocking.

“It's been our achilles heel all year. I have had to make so many changes because of injuries. Tonight we did look shaky.”

I asked the manager had he had ever thought of taking Enda Minogue out of the goals.

“No, because we do everything as a unit. We have had to dig Enda out at times; that's true. He has been responsible for giving away goals at times, but not so much tonight. But you must remember that defensively he is one of a unit.

“I do believe we have a really good goalkeeper. I just believe we are in a really bad place at the moment.

“We brought in Conor Kearns as our number one. But Enda has had to come in. Enda has had to deal with a lot. He has won us games. And tonight's result is not down to Enda.”

I suggested to the manager that I felt he was one of the reasons why Dundalk were in the mess they were in. The manager said that there were a lot of other reasons why Dundalk were in the mess they were in other than their current keeper.

“We defend as a team, and we score as a team. I am not going to come out here and throw anybody under the bus. As hard as it is, tonight's defeat is not all on one player.

“Enda is just one of eleven, and that's important to stress. Tonight is a difficult night, but one player can not be blamed for that.”

I suggested to the boss that 13 goals conceded in four games and that it was not good enough. He said that was not a good stat. He said that it was not the fault of any one player. We are all a unit.

He said his team defended as a unit. He said that if they do concede, it was not the fault of the defence, and if midfield or forwards do not score, it was not their fault either. The manager says its responsibility performance wise lies with the whole team.

“We need to get back to work. I am confident that we can show what we did in the early part of the season. We are back in the Premier Division. We are coming out of what is the end of a bad night. I am not panicking. I am anxious to get better.

“We are in the middle of the table. We are fighting for everything. Of course I am aware of the deficiencies in the team. They are there. They are glaringly obvious.

“We have only won one game in 11. But there was a stage in the season where Bohemians only won one game in nine.

“Now they are still right in the running for the league. This league is difficult. We have yet to get an easy game. We have scraped for everything we can get. We have to keep scrapping.

“The supporters are brilliant. Despite our home performances, they still keep coming. It's a reality check on where we are right now. We have to avoid getting involved in relegation play-offs.”

On Sean Spaight being absent from the team, I asked the manager why he is not getting into the first team. Sean was on the bench for the Pats game, but was not on the bench for Friday night's game.

The manager said that Sean probably has a bit to do regarding experience. He said that he is still only 17. He is in his sixth year at school. We like Sean. He has started games this season for us.

We also have a lot of senior players coming back into the team as well. Igor Vassenein has been playing for us at age 18. But you have to look at his physical attributes.

Sean would still have a little bit to do. Sean is going away too with the Republic of Ireland under 17's for the World Cup in the next week or so. That is another reason.

“There is no tension between myself and Sean. He is a great player and a great prospect. I love working with the guy. I have heard nothing about rumours that he could be on his way out of the club. That is news to me. “

The manager was very frank and honest in his interview. He stayed loyal to his players. This is a very good characteristic which I like about the manager.

He has to be a very patient man, answering all the questions I asked him on Friday. In my 37 years covering Dundalk, there are many past managers who would not have shown the respect and patience Ciaran shows.

Many of them would have blown up on me at some stage during an interview. He is a great asset to the club. I am sure that given the right financial support in the close season, Ciaran can be successful next season.

But Dundalk are by no means out of the woods regarding the play-off spot. They are just seven points off that zone. Confidence among the team seems to be low. Dundalk have only four games left.

Two of them are against Shamrock Rovers and Bohemians. The other games are away to Sligo and Derry. Sligo pushed Pats all the way on Saturday night. The North West team are all but relegated.

They have nothing to play for. Yet they gave the Inchicore side the fright of their lives. Pats won by just a single goal. They could have dropped vital points that would have knocked them out of the league race.

Dundalk are not in action next week. Next game is at Oriel against Bohemians on 2nd October.Dundalk FC women's under-23 team will play Wexford in the final of the Women's Development League this coming Wednesday at Oriel. Kick-off is at 7.45 pm.

This will be the most important women's game that Dundalk have played in over 15 years. The team is made up of players aged 17, 18, 19, up to 23. Some may be even younger.

Management of the team have issued a plea to supporters to come out and give the team as much encouragement as possible.I asked one of the management team if there would soon be a women's team playing senior soccer in the League of Ireland.

He said they were hopeful it would happen next season. This would be a great boost for soccer in the area. There are so many League of Ireland clubs playing senior football now; Dundalk are one of the few that are not.

Last Sunday week they beat Longford 5-0. Striker Sophie Hanlon got three of the goals. Good luck to the girls tomorrow, Wednesday. Let's hope the club gets the boost it needs to have a senior team next season.

Tickets for Wednesday night's game can be purchased on the club's social media channels.

Have a great week. Please look after yourselves and each other. And remember, please be careful out there.