MARCUS CAVAROLI Heavy legs from Tolka showdown takes its toll on Hyland and co

SKIPPER Jake Hyland had no complaints about his team’s defeat at the UCD Bowl but at the same time pointed to extenuating circumstances which went against Drogheda United.

While the students had a full week to prepare for the fixture, the Drogs had to play a back match away to Shelbourne on Monday and Hyland felt that definitely placed his team at a disadvantage However, he accepted that the league leaders had bossed the game even before tired legs began to kick in in the latter stages.

‘I’m disappointed because we came here, not expecting to win, but thinking that we could come out with three points after we beat them last time,’ Hyland began, ‘but I think on the night they were the better team and deserved to win.

‘I think we only started playing once they got the first goal. We maybe stood off them at the start and showed them a little bit too much respect, but they are a good team and a good footballing side.

‘From the start I think we just needed to get closer to them. Once we went 1-0 down we got a foothold in the game and in the second half we had a good chance to go 1-1, but that’s not an excuse.’

Hyland agreed that the students looked happier on their own ground, rather than in the more restricted confines of United Park.

‘They make the pitch very big. That’s what we knew. We beat them in United Park, but that’s a different ground and they were two completely different games.

‘But we’re going to play them again and I think we won’t be too far off them at the end of the season.’

Hyland tried to put the result into perspective, and pointed out that Drogheda were still firmly in the promotion race as well as lying just four points behind the leaders.

This Friday’s game away to Longford Town, which gives the Boynesiders an opportunity to open up an eight-point advantage over another of their chief rivals, provides an opportunity to draw a line under the UCD result.

‘We definitely weren’t good. It was one of our worst performances, but if you look at the amount of games we’ve played this season, this is only our third loss, so we’re not doing too bad,’ he said.

‘We’re after coming off a very hard week. We played Shels in the heat on Monday and then tonight in the heat and you have to take those factors into account.

‘It’s tough playing two games in a week and it affected our training as well, so we’re looking forward to training on Monday and having a full week to prepare for Longford.

‘We’re going to have loads of big games between now and the end of the season, but we’ve just said in the dressing-room that we’re going to be back on it on Monday and we’ll be right up for that game against Longford.

‘There’s a couple of our former teammates playing for them [Chris Mulhall, Shane Elworthy and Jamie Hollywood], it was a good game last time and it’s going to be interesting again.’