Cork v Dundalk

Cork City vs Dundalk Preview

Cork City will be going in search of a fifth league win on the trot in the Irish Premier Division on Friday night when they entertain Dundalk at Turner's Cross as the hosts also look to pull themselves further away from the relegation play-off spot, currently occupied by Drogheda United who are just a point behind Cork City.

Friday's hosts had previously stumbled to a disastrous six defeats on the trot in the domestic top flight but Liam Buckley's side have since staged an important recovery by putting together an impressive four-match winning streak.

Recent wins against Sligo Rovers, Shamrock Rovers, Drogheda United and Bohemians have helped lift Cork City out of the bottom two places in the division and another three points against Dundalk could see them leapfrog Sligo Rovers into seventh place in the table.

Three of these four wins have been achieved on home soil at Turner's Cross and having previously beaten Dundalk 1-0 in their last meeting at home, Cork City look well placed for a possible result here, while five of the last eight home games have also resulted in Under 2.5 goals.

Onto Dundalk and the visitors currently sit in sixth place in the Irish Premier Division standings and will head into Friday's clash against Cork City on the back of a comprehensive 4-1 rout of UCD at home in their previous match.

However, Dundalk had slipped to four games without a win beforehand, suffering three defeats in the process as they were handed losses by Derry City, St Patrick's Athletic and Shamrock Rovers, all of which were away from home.

The bigger picture shows that Dundalk have lost just these three games though out of their last 11 matches overall but the visitors have been let down somewhat by their performances on the road in recent times.

Dundalk have managed to capture just three away wins from their last 10 outings on their travels while goals have been in short supply with no fewer than seven of Dundalk's last 10 away games also resulting in Under 2.5 goals, so the prospects of a high-scoring game on Friday look fairly slim.

Cork City v Dundalk Verdict

Cork City have produced a positive response to their former losing streak in the Premier Division and the hosts will be keen to get something from this upcoming clash on Friday night as well, as they look to steer themselves to safer waters in the Irish top flight.

Dundalk have lost their last three away games on the trot so they may struggle to stay on level terms with their rejuvenated hosts.

Either way, seven of the last nine meetings between Cork City and Dundalk have resulted in Under 2.5 goals and another low-scoring encounter could unfold here too.

Therefore, our main bet will be Under 2.5 goals @ 1.75

Other side bets worth considering:

Cork City win @ 2.70

Correct score: 1-1 @ 9.00