Shelbourne v Dundalk

Shelbourne vs Dundalk Preview

Despite being dealt a disappointing 2-1 defeat at home to Sligo Rovers last Friday in the Irish Premier Division, Shelbourne still sit top of the domestic top flight table but their lead over second placed Derry City has been reduced to just two points ahead of this upcoming clash with Dundalk, while the visitors registered a 3-2 win away from home at St Patrick's Athletic on Monday night and Jon Daly's side will be looking for more of the same on Friday evening.

The recent 2-1 loss at home to Sligo Rovers ended an eight-game unbeaten run in the Premier Division for Shelbourne which consisted of four wins and four draws, with victories gained over St Patrick's Athletic (home and away), Waterford and Shamrock Rovers, so the hosts should still be upbeat about their chances here this Friday at their Tolka Park ground.

Results on home soil at Tolka Park have generally been pretty solid and consistent for Shelbourne as the hosts have been handed just two losses in their last 19 home games whilst collecting 10 wins in the process, including 1-0 and 2-1 victories over their upcoming opponents, Dundalk, in previous meetings in their own backyard.

In addition, Shelbourne have scored at least once in 17 of these last 19 home games as well.

Dundalk head into this tough looking trip at Tolka Park against the Irish Premier Division leaders on the back of a creditable 3-2 win away from home at St Patrick's Athletic and having previously registered wins against the likes of Bohemians and Shamrock Rovers, Jon Daly's side would love nothing better than to grab all three points here on Friday night.

However, this may be easier said than done though for Dundalk who have managed to capture just three wins out of their last 19 matches overall in the domestic top flight, especially as the former two wins were both recorded on home soil at their Oriel Park.

Within these previous 19 matches, Dundalk have been dealt nine defeats in the process and to make matters worse, seven of these nine losses have been handed out to Jon Daly's side on their travels which does not appear to bode well for this upcoming trip to Tolka Park to take on Shelbourne.

The bigger picture shows Dundalk have managed to collect just three wins out of their previous 16 outings on the road while also slipping to 11 defeats in the process, so this poor sequence of results seem to indicate further problems away from home on Friday night.

Shelbourne v Dundalk Verdict

Shelbourne have won both of their previous two meetings at home against Dundalk and the hosts look the more likely to take the spoils in this upcoming clash as well.

Therefore, our main bet will be Shelbourne win @ 1.77

Other side bets worth considering:

Shelbourne win & Under 2.5 goals @ 3.40

Correct Score: Shelbourne 2-0 @ 7.00