Dundalk’s relegation was confirmed by a Derry City travelling party featuring players who starred in their glory years, a decade where the Louth club won five titles, three FAI Cups and twice qualified for the Europa League group stages. With heavy debts and concerns around the club’s long-term direction, all they have to show for it is the memories.
Robbie Benson and Michael Duffy would feature prominently in the highlights reel but while Duffy is now back at his home-town club chasing titles and trophies, Benson has lived through the saddest part of Dundalk’s demise. It was a second half foul by Benson on Duffy that allowed Will Patching – another former Lilywhite – to wrap up the three points for the visitors.
Dan McDonnell and Seán O’Connor look back on a huge night of drama at both ends of the League of Ireland table
It’s a first league win since August for Ruaidhrí Higgins’ side – the Derry boss was a league winner as a player and coach with Dundalk – but some of the gloss was removed by results from elsewhere.
Derry were on top of the ‘as it stands’ table for most of the evening but Shelbourne’s strong finish means they sit two points off the pace ahead of a tricky trip to in-form St Patrick’s Athletic next Friday.
They may still regret the dropped points at home last weekend that placed heavy scrutiny on them ahead of this fixture.
Higgins’ charges started brightly, seeking to respond to the back-to-back draws which led to further questions being asked of their character.
Their opening goal was a story of two players brought into the team by Higgins, with both Patching and Dundalk’s all-time record scorer Patrick Hoban dropping to the bench after Monday’s draw with Sligo Rovers.
Hoban’s presence on the bench was a positive given that it looked like he would face a spell on the sidelines with a muscle problem. Danny Mullen and Colm Whelan came in as an attacking combination, the latter making his first start of the season after returning from a long-term setback.
He made it a goalscoring appearance too, even though team-mates rushed to Danny Mullen after his header from Duffy’s corner found a way past Ross Munro. Replays suggested that the route was a flick off the back of Whelan.
Derry were the better side in the early exchanges, with Sadou Diallo sprightly and Adam O’Reilly inches away with a shot from distance, but they struggled to carry that momentum through the entirety of the first half and they nearly lost the lead when Jamie Gullan breached the offside trap but fired wide when he had plenty of time to pick his spot.
Derry had to withstand some pressure after the restart with Dundalk firmly in do-or-die territory, and they had their moments with Jad Hakiki wasting the best of them. By the hour mark, Derry had absorbed the worst of it and went in search of the insurance goal. Paul McMullan fluffed a sitter before the clumsy foul that allowed Patching to put the result beyond doubt.
For Dundalk, the bigger battle of securing their future lies ahead with serious question marks around the future of Jon Daly and other staff members with cost-cutting measures inevitable. It could be argued that relegation is necessary to press the reset button and come back stronger.
Derry, by contrast, will concentrate on the memories they will try to make in the coming weeks
Dundalk: Munro, Mountney, Boyle, Cann, Keogh (Animasahun 71); Oostenbrink (Keane 63), Dervin; Horgan, Benson (Garbett 79), Hakiki (O’Kane 63); Gullan (Kenny 71).
Derry City: Maher, Boyce, Connolly (Idehen 79), S McEleney, Wisdom; Diallo, O’Reilly; McMullan (Davenport 90), Whelan (Patching 64), Duffy; Mullen.
Referee: Gavin Colfer
