Cabinteely in town for Dundalk’s first friendly
CABINTEELY FC are a fitting opponent for the first game in a new era at Oriel Park as they meet Dundalk FC for the first time ever at senior level tonight (Tuesday, kick-off 7.45pm).
While in existence since 1967, the South Dublin outfit only joined the League of Ireland in 2015 with only two of Stephen Kenny’s side having faced them before.
One of those, Dean Jarvis – who scored the opener in a 4-0 pre-season win for Derry City against Cabinteely at Abbotstown last February – is set to miss the game with a hip injury.
He is one of three absentees for the club’s opening pre-season fixture along with Stephen O’Donnell (calf) and Pat Hoban (thigh).
Manager Stephen Kenny confirmed that O’Donnell was likely to be out for a ‘couple of weeks’ and was unlikely to see any action until after the side’s Spanish trip at the end of the month.
‘Stephen has a slight tear in his calf so he won’t be available for a couple of weeks,’ said Kenny.
‘Pat is still easing his way back from injury but he has a tight thigh at the moment so he probably won’t play this week either.’
Despite the ‘couple of minor injuries that you’d rather not have’, Kenny said he was pleased with how pre-season was progressing and was looking forward to two matches this week, with the annual Malone Cup match against Drogheda Utd scheduled for Saturday evening at Oriel Park at 5pm.
‘It’s a very busy period at the moment but we’re just looking forward to getting players some minutes. That’s what it’s about now, getting matches under the belt.’ Kenny said his team selections this week would be ‘somewhat experimental’ but anticipated two tough games.
‘Pat Devlin and Eddie Gormley have done well since going in at Cabinteely and they appear to have a stronger squad put together for this year. It will be a good workout for us but it is our first game so people shouldn’t be expecting any miracles.’
The second Dundalk player to have faced Cabinteely before is winger Dylan Connolly. Despite injury problems at the end of last season and over the winter, Kenny confirmed that he would be available for the game.
‘Dylan had his foot in a boot for about a month after the FAI Cup final but he will play on Tuesday, as will Chris Shields.
‘John Mountney has had a slower introduction than others during pre-season because of the injury he had at the end of last season but we hope he sees some action too.’
While two of the club’s five new signings – Hoban and Jarvis – will miss out on this week’s games, Kenny confirmed there would be debuts for Ronan Murray, Stephen Folan and Karolis Chvedukas.
‘Karolis is a little behind the others having not played much in the last six months but he will feature on Tuesday,’ confirmed the manager.
There will also be a chance for trailist Jeff McGowan to impress. Kenny said the 19-year-old former Barnsley player had done well since joining the club for training last week but said matches would give a better indication of the Clare man’s talents.
‘He has trained well but we need to see him in games now.
‘He has a good attitude but we’ll see how he gets on.’
Asked what type of striker McGowan was, Kenny said: ‘He’s tall but technically good. He’s still quite young but he’s quick.’
After the Malone Cup final on Saturday, Dundalk will depart for Spain the following Monday January 29th where they will take part in a five day pre-season camp. Last week it was confirmed that they would play two friendly matches against Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenxin on Wednesday January 31st and Korean side FC Seoul on Friday February 2nd before their return to Ireland that day. Both games will be played at the Pinatar Sports Arena in Murcia.
‘They should be two good matches,’ said Kenny.
‘Those teams should have a different style so it’s good to experience different cultures. They’ll be two good games for us but it’s all about getting the fitness up.’