O’Brien Expecting Another Tough Battle Against Drogheda | OneFootball

The Reds return to action on Friday night as they travel to face Drogheda United in the SSE Airtricity League Men’s Premier Division, looking to build on last week’s 2-1 Dublin Derby win against Shamrock Rovers.

Joey O’Brien’s side picked up a huge three points last week at Tolka Park, producing a disciplined performance and showing real resilience to come away with the victory in a fiercely contested Dublin derby. The result continued Shels strong run of form, with the Reds unbeaten in their last eight league games, winning four and drawing four.

Speaking to ShelsTV after training at the AUL on Thursday, O’Brien said: “A Dublin derby win just gives the whole place a lift. Over the last eight games we’re the in form team, with four wins and four draws.

“The last team that beat us was Drogheda, so we know how difficult a game it is. They turned us over, but we’ve had a nice run since then and we know how tough a challenge it will be going there.”

Attention now turns to another important league clash, with the Reds making the trip to Drogheda. Meetings between the sides have produced plenty of drama in recent seasons, including the 4-3 game at Tolka Park earlier this year.

“We’ve always had battles with Drogheda over the last few years,” O’Brien said. “There has never been a lot in them. The game down in Tolka, we were 2-0 up and probably the better team in the first half, but in the second half they pulled it out of the bag.

“They have real quality throughout the team. Shane Farrell, Conor Kane, Ryan Brennan, Mark Doyle up top, who is a proven goalscorer, Thomas Oluwa and Brandon Kavanagh I know from Rovers. They’ve had a difficult spell but we know more than anyone the problems they can cause. They’re really strong on set plays as they have been for a long time.”

Drogheda come into the game on a difficult run of results, but O’Brien says their quality makes them a dangerous opponent, particularly at home.

“We know how difficult it is going there,” he said. “We know they have the quality to cause real problems and we are expecting nothing different. It was a big win for us last week, but we know we have to back it up now.”

On the team news front, Kerr McInroy will miss out, while Jack Henry-Francis is back in the squad. Odhran Casey has also returned to training as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury that has kept him out for four months.

“Odhran has been back in training and we’re hoping to integrate him back in over the next few weeks,” O’Brien said. “He’s going to be a huge part of the club going forward. It was a bad hamstring injury that knocked him out for four months, but he played for Lorcan’s team with the 20s last Saturday and we’re just building up the minutes.

“You could see what he’s going to bring to us. He’s worked really hard, he’s back in full training, and now it’s about trying to get 90 minutes into him and building him up.”

O’Brien also welcomed Jack Henry-Francis back into the matchday squad, but says the staff will continue to manage his return carefully.

“Jack is back in the squad,” he said. “He’s another player that we need to be careful with and manage the minutes. We need to make sure he stays on the pitch and we need to look after him. He’s had little niggles that have knocked him out of rhythm, but he’s a top, top player.”

With a number of players returning to fitness, O’Brien says the squad is starting to move in the right direction after a demanding period. An injury crisis early in the season saw a number of key players sidelined for extended spells.

“We’ve done a lot of looking at it (the injury crisis),” he said. “The amount of games last season, 50 games for certain lads, then they had three weeks off and a tough three-week pre-season. But we’re getting them back. When we have a fully fit squad, it will be a headache for me to pick it.”

The Reds were also handed their potential European opponents this week, with the possibility of another meeting with Linfield or a tie against Estonian opposition should Shels progress.

“It’s crazy really,” O’Brien said. “To potentially play Linfield three times in two years would be mad. It would be exciting looking at the draw, but for us it’s about Friday night.

“We know the two potential opponents. Linfield are in pre season, Nomme Kalju FC opposition are in season and we can watch their games, so we’ll be prepared. But the focus now is Drogheda on Friday night.”