Dundalk get out of jail in seven-goal extravaganza
SOCCER SSE AIRTRICITY LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION
IF there’s such a thing as a get out of jail card then Dundalk certainly cashed it in last Tuesday night against Longford Town.
Many expected this to be a cakewalk for Stephen Kenny’s side with the relegation battlers a massive 25/1 for the win with bookmakers and 8/1 to claim the draw.
In the end, Dundalk required a 92nd minute winner from Ciaran Kilduff to come out on top in what was a seven goal thriller.
The result meant the Lilywhites stretched their lead at the top of the table to nine points, albeit this was cut back to six thanks to Cork City’s 1-0 win away to Wexford Youths on Sunday, with John Caulfield’s side still having a game in hand to play.
It did give the champions some decent breathing space heading into their European campaign this week though. The club and its supporters will no doubt be hoping that campaign lasts longer than the two matches played last season, which would mean it would likely be at least August before the side play domestically again.
If that dream is to become a reality then Dundalk will have to be a lot tighter at the back than they were against Tony Cousins’ side. The visitors only managed four shots throughout but, with a bit more luck, could have come away with the most unlikely of wins having clawed themselves back to level terms on no fewer than three occasions.
In what was a jittery display at the back, the side can perhaps be forgiven for having one eye of FH Hafnarfjardur.
If the defending was the downside then Dundalk can take great heart in their performance going forward. The four goals scored on the night brought their tally since the break to 11 in three matches and if they can keep up that level of performance and shut up shop at the back then they’ll take some stopping against their Icelandic opponents over the course of the next two weeks.
While Kilduff might have stolen the headlines, it was David McMillan who stole the show. His second hat-trick in the space of four days – the first Dundalk player to manage such a feat since Mick Fairclough in 1981 – means he has already equalled his tally of 12 league goals for the whole of last season and his confidence was up so much that he looked like scoring with virtually every touch. The fact all three of his goals were with his head – an area of his game he is not renowned for – showed the work he has put in to improve his game.
There’s a real battle with himself and Kilduff for that striker’s berth at present and both are rising to the challenge with Dundalk FC the real winners.
Three times McMillan gave his side the lead against Longford and on each occasion it looked like Dundalk would push on to see the game out comfortably. That never emerged but, in hindsight at least, the adrenaline and joy from such a dramatic late victory may have been the perfect tonic to prepare for what is arguably the biggest period in the club’s season.
It could have went very differently, of course, but Dundalk have shown time and again that scoring late goals is no fluke.
This was never anticipated as being a classic but it turned out to be a crucial three points and will be remembered as one of the most crucial victories if the side do go on to lift their third title-in-a-row at the end of the season.
Having started firmly on the front foot, the home side took the lead after just 11 minutes. Patrick McEleney floated a cross to the back post towards McMillan, who stole away from his market to head back across the face of goal to the bottom left hand corner.
At that point it looked as though it would be a case of how many for Dundalk as they piled forward at will. Brian Gartland went close with a header from a McEleney corner that was straight at Paul Skinner before McMillan went close twice in quick succession, including with another header from a Dane Massey cross that flashed just wide of the left hand upright.
McEleney then curled a shot wide after a neat one-two with Ronan Finn before Longford conjured up the most unlikely of equalisers on 35 minutes.
Kealon Dillon’s corner to the near post saw Lee Duffy get across his market to turn the ball home at the near post with what was his side’s first shot.
Perhaps a little shellshocked by the goal, Dundalk showed little by the way of a response before the break.
Within four minutes of the restart they were 2-1 in front though. Sean Gannon’s deep cross from the right was met by the run of McMillan, whose glancing header downwards crept past Skinner to the bottom left hand corner.
Once again Longford would respond though on 55 minutes. After Duffy had a shot deflect just wide, Dillon’s corner from the left was missed at the near post by Finn with Noel Haverty on hand to bundle home a second equaliser for the visitors from close range.
McMillan would complete his hat-trick in the 62nd minute, however, to restore Dundalk’s lead – getting up ahead of Skinner to head home from six yards out following McEleney’s floated ball in from the left.
McEleney then went close to a fourth for the home side six minutes later when he spun away from Haverty inside the box only to see his placed shot pushed onto the crossbar by Skinner.
Both McMillan and Andy Boyle then had headers go over before Longford silenced Oriel Park for a third time on 74 minutes.
A dubious free kick saw Dillon deliver a low cross into the area which came off Boyle but despite being kept out by Gary Rogers, Rhys Gorman was on hand to tap in to make it 3-3.
Longford then went close to taking a shock lead on 77 minutes when a mix-up between Boyle and Rogers at the back saw the latter smack a clearance off Kaleem Simon with the rebound creeping wide of an empty net.
Dundalk thought they had restored their lead five minutes later when Daryl Horgan’s cross was headed down by Kilduff before being scrambled in by McMillan. However, on this occasion the offside flag was up.
McMillan attempted to repay the favour when he headed down to Kilduff three minutes from the end but the 27-year-old substitute could only fire over on the turn with his left foot.
At that stage it looked like being a night of disappointment for the Lilywhites but this side never accepts their fate and in the 92nd minute a left wing cross from Horgan was headed home at close range by Kilduff to send Oriel Park into raptures.
Dundalk had somehow done it
and what an important win it could turn out to be.
Speaking afterwards, Kenny said he felt his side were worthy of the three points.
“I thought we deserved the win,” he said.
“We were much the better team for the match and played well in periods. One of our good qualities is that we don’t concede goals from set plays so to concede three from three – two corner kicks and a free kick – is careless beyond the extreme but we always have the capacity to get goals and thankfully we did that.
“We’re relieved that we won because it would have been a very disappointing couple of points to drop. Those are the standards that we’ve set but credit to the players for their ability to get late goals yet again,” said the manager.