Friendlies lined up for end of month
DUNDALK FC’s pre-season schedule is set to be officially confirmed in the coming days but will include two friendlies against Austrian and Swedish opposition in Spain at the end of the month.
It is expected that Vinny Perth’s first game as new head coach of the Lilywhites will be against neighbours Drogheda Utd in the Malone Cup on Friday January 25th.
Dundalk will then depart for Murcia on Monday January 28th for a training camp where they will play two matches against the as-yet-to-be-named opposition.
They will return to action at Oriel Park on Tuesday February 5th against Perth’s old side Longford Town before traveling to Turner’s Cross to face Cork City in the President’s Cup final on Saturday February 9th, six days before the league opener at home to Sligo Rovers on Friday February 15th.
There is also the possibility that the Lilywhites could host Athlone Town as part of their pre-season schedule having been paired with the Midlanders in the fourth round draw for the Leinster Senior Cup.
All dates are so far provisional but Perth said it was hoped to fully confirm them soon.
He said: ‘The schedule is set in stone but at this time of the year it’s difficult to nail down dates. I know we’re back in Murcia on the 28th and we play two friendlies that week against an Austrian side and a Swedish side. As a club we’ll confirm them over the next day or two.
‘We’ve agreed to play Longford and we’ve Cork in the President’s Cup and we will play Drogheda. After that we may add one game in. We’ve always only played five or six pre-season friendlies. Athlone is one we could look to fit in there. We were waiting on the draw for that to be confirmed but the lads have their schedule now and know what they are doing for the next six weeks but once dates are fixed we will get it out there.’
While no doubt looking forward to the start of the season, Perth said it was important that the hard work was put in over the next six weeks to prepare for the league opener against Sligo Rovers on February 15th.
‘I’m in no way or shape inexperienced. It has been four leagues, two doubles and a couple of league cups and 24 European games so that didn’t happen by accident. What we need to do is do our next six weeks between now and the first game properly.
‘There’s a lot of work to be done now so I’m in no rush for the Sligo game to start. I know how important the work we’re doing at the moment is. The time will come for that but we’re in a good place.
‘The lads have come back in great nick but I expected that anyway because we’ve had them in two weeks ago. They’re fairly fit so we can concentrate on football fairly quickly,” he said.