GARTS WANTS DUNDALK TO BE MORE RUTHLESS
DUNDALK defender Brian Gartland has encouraged his side to be more ruthless in front of goal in upcoming games to ensure they maintain their advantage over Cork City at the top of the table.
Stephen Kenny’s side have scored a league best 45 goals in 20 matches to date but the centre half believes they are capable of much more, stressing that last Friday’s 5-0 win over Bray Wanderers was a game they could have won by a bigger margin.
He said: ‘I think early doors after 15 or 20 minutes we had gone 2-0 up but the job then is to keep boys on their toes and keep a bit of tempo in the game, not to go at walking pace.
‘Yeah when they sit back you have to be patient but I felt we could have had a bit more pressure on the ball at times. We could have had a bit more tempo in the final third. ‘When we did break their midfield line we need to be a bit more ruthless. It’s great getting the goals but we missed a few chances there and we could have had a hatful more. You need that ruthless streak in you no matter who you’re playing.’
When it was put to him that Dundalk could be on course to beat the record 78 goals they scored in winning the title in 2015, Gartland said it was a good sign that people were giving out about missed chances.
‘It shows the amount of chances we are creating that we’re scoring that many goals and we’re still talking about missed chances - sitters some of them. Everyone in the team is guilty of them. I think we’ve all had one this season. So that’s a great sign, especially when we’re keeping them out at the other end. If that continues and our only complaint is that we’re scoring three, four or five goals and giving out that we didn’t score more then it’s not the worst.
‘Maybe we’re just a bit too moany and expect too much but it is great going and keeping them out at the other end is good too. Some teams go gung-ho and leave the door open at the back but it’s important that we have a good balance there,’ he said.
Dundalk’s victory over Bray last week means they have 46 points from 20 matches, the same total they had after the same number of matches in title winning seasons in 2014 and 2016. While hoping that is a good omen for his side, Gartland admitted there was little separating Dundalk and Cork City and said results in the head to head games could be pivotal come the end of the season.
‘Hopefully it’s a good omen but let’s remember that 2014 went to the last game of the season when we had to win to get the title. In 2016 we done it with a few games to go so lets hope it’s a good omen.
‘We can only look after ourselves. I know that’s a cliché but Cork are on a good run and winning games and we are as well so we can only affect our own results. We can’t change their results so it’s up to us to win the games and when it comes to head to heads with them try to win them. Playing each other four times this year is massive, especially against the big teams around you and more so Cork because it’s looking like the two of us are the main challengers again.
‘Once Cork are winning we have to keep winning. We have to keep winning anyway if we want to stretch our lead. If you want to win the league every game is vital. I
‘t doesn’t matter who you’re playing, it’s just the same thing again you go out, look after yourselves and try to get the three points and hope they drop points at the same time.’
Next up for Dundalk is a trip to Tallaght Stadium on Friday night to face Shamrock Rovers and Gartland is well aware that the Lilywhites will get nothing easy against Stephen Bradley’s side.
‘They’ve had good results at home against Cork and against Pat’s so it’s going to be a tough game. It always is against them. They have a habit of raising their game against us.
‘You know you’re never going to get anything easy against them but every game is massive now every week, especially when Cork are winning. It’s so tight at the top.
‘Rovers have got good players, especially good attacking players and there seems to be a bit of needle between themselves and us. They’re not the biggest fans of us so it will be tough,’ he said.