The run-in begins at Tolka Park on Friday night as Sligo Rovers come to town to face the League of Ireland Premier Division leaders Shelbourne FC (7:45 pm KO // Virgin Media).
Damien Duff’s side will be looking to get back to winning ways as the business end of the season roars into life.
Duff gave a squad update to ShelbourneFC.ie on Thursday evening: “Sean Gannon is missing through suspension, JJ is stepping up his rehab. If there was one player who knows exactly what the role is and could come in cold, having not done much on the training pitch, it would be JJ, but we have to be careful. We don’t want to make the issue any worse. We’ll give JJ every chance and make a call closer to kick-off. Sam Bone is also carrying a knock, and we’ll keep an eye on him.”
The Reds suffered a setback seven days ago with defeat in Galway. For Duff, the main aim is getting back to basics:
“Basics is the right word. We need to get back to basics, back to simplicity. Teams that play simple football are usually very successful. If you can be the best at that, you can go far. The last two weeks haven’t changed that – listen, it’s been tough on the lads, they were gutted in Derry and last week, but it hasn’t altered our course. We’ve been the best team in the country over 30 games – now it’s time to finish the job and be the best over 36. I have no doubt in my mind that these players have what it takes.”
Duff says the pressure at the top is to be savoured, having experienced the pressure at the other end of the table during his playing career:
“Maybe at some stages in my career I’ve spent more time at the bottom than the top as a player, but they’re very different experiences. The pressure our boys are feeling is new to them, but they’ve been at the top for virtually the entire season, and have handled it really well. It’s a wonderful and amazing place to be. The most important thing now is staying there.”
This will be the fourth meeting between the sides this season. Shels won 1-0 in the Showgrounds early in the season, but both subsequent games ended in 2-1 defeats. However, Duff feels those games had plenty of positives:
“Take out their two goals and watch the game as a whole at Tolka, and you realise we’re a bloody good team. There’s a lot of good stuff in there. In the away game, we handed them goals. In both of those games, there were four really poor goals given away, and we’ve said it before—those days need to be over. No more gifts. We need to get back to performing, playing with no fear and no respect—just getting back to that, doing the basics right, and keeping it simple.”
The next four days could have a big say on the remainder of the season, with the meeting against the Bit O’Red followed by the Dublin Derby against St Patrick’s Athletic on Monday. Duff says the focus must be on the game, not the bigger picture:
“The narrative for the weekend is that it’s this massive thing, but the players need to strip it all back, don’t think like that. Yes, you have to play with energy, hunger, and an edge. But you also need to stay ultra calm, because with that comes clarity. When you align all of that, you usually get a strong individual performance. That’s what we’ve been missing at times over recent weeks. Bring top-quality individual performances, and suddenly you have a top-quality team. You can’t overthink football—no ‘why’ or ‘what if.’ When enough players perform well, the team plays well, and the result usually follows.”
Duff was in attendance on Wednesday night as legendary former Shels manager Dermot Keely launched his book, reflecting on his life and storied career. Duff revealed Keely was quick to impart his wisdom on his former school pupil, having taught Duff in secondary school:
“The biggest compliment he could give me was saying he saw a lot of his old team in how we play now—playing with no fear, no respect, putting bodies on the line for the Shels crest, and finding a way to win no matter what.
“We need to get back to all of that. Dermot, what he’s done, is incredible—a genuine, and I mean this, Shelbourne legend. I bought books for all the staff, and they’re going to read them—there’s so much in there. Dermot has had a tough few years with Alan passing away, another man who represented this club with great pride, and I just wanted to go down and show my support. He gave me a few pointers—he’s been there, done it, won it, while I’m trying to get there. I’ve yet to do it.”
Ahead of the return to Tolka after close to a month on the road, Duff hailed the special connection between the players, staff, and supporters, who have been behind the team home and away, offering unwavering support all season:
“It’s a really special thing that’s happened here organically, the connection between the people on the pitch and the people in the stands. I tell the players to their faces every day that I love them, and I tell everyone in the media the same—people know how much I love the players. But I probably don’t tell the supporters enough how much I love them. They’ve played a huge part in the best three years of my life. Do I personally need them tomorrow? No, I’m not playing. But the players need them—more than the supporters can imagine. They need their noise, and they need their love— it makes all the difference.”
