Two teams operating at opposing ends in the League of Ireland Premier Division come together on Friday evening when Shelbourne host Sligo Rovers at Tolka Park.
The hosts are cruising at the top of the division with a six-point lead over second place, while the visitors are in eighth and four points above the relegation playoff place.
Match preview
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Shelbourne's remarkable rise back to the top of the League of Ireland has continued this year with Damien Duff's side currently sitting at the top of the league with a six-point lead over second-placed Derry City.
The 13-time League of Ireland Premier Division champions have gone without a top-flight trophy since 2006 and have spent the majority of those years in the First Division after the Football Association of Ireland stripped their Premier Division licence due to financial issues ahead of the 2007 campaign.
They have participated in the top flight in a number of seasons since the initial relegation, featuring in the Premier Division in 2012, 2013 and 2020 before being promoted again in 2022, staying in the division since then.
A seventh-place finish in 2022 was improved to fourth last year and Shelbourne have seemingly gone one step further once again as they top the division a third of the way into the campaign with just two losses from 19 fixtures.
Duff's men started the campaign unbeaten in their first nine before falling to defeat in two consecutive outings, but they quickly recovered and now come into this one on a run of four wins and four draws in their last eight.
Shelbourne have already beaten Sligo earlier this season in a 1-0 away win and they have not lost in a meeting between the two since a 2-0 defeat in September 2022.
As for the visitors, they have gone through the opposite process to Shelbourne in recent years with a steady decline down the League of Ireland Premier Division rankings.
After back-to-back qualifications to European competitions in 2020 and 2021, Sligo have since gone on to finish fifth in 2022, eighth in 2023 and now once again find themselves embroiled in a potential battle for survival.
They sit just four points better off than Drogheda United in the relegation playoff spot and come into this game with only one win in their last 10 fixtures, including a 3-1 loss to the ninth-placed side in that time.
John Russell's men have failed to score in six of those last 10 matches, something that will worry the manager as they are set to face the second-best defensive side in the league.
Team News
Duff will have a fully fit squad to choose from for this fixture, leaving him likely to field the same side that beat Shamrock Rovers 2-0 in their last outing.
Will Jarvis surprisingly started that game after being forced off in the 32nd minute of the victory over St Patrick's Athletic, and the striker scored twice from the spot to give them the three points against the reigning champions.
Shane Griffin also returned to the bench as an unused substitute after just over a month out of the squad due to a calf problem, and the defender could be in contention for a return to the side here.
As for the visitors, they are carrying up to five injuries into this game against the league leaders.
John Mahon, Nando Pijnaker, Simon Power and William Fitzgerald are all expected to miss the fixture due to fitness issues, while Conor Reynolds is also a doubt after being taken off with an injury late on in the draw with Derry City.
We say: Shelbourne 2-0 Sligo Rovers
Shelbourne's impressive run of form coming into this game compared to Sligo's series of disappointing results leaves the hosts as strong favourites to take the three points here, and we expect them to do just that.
The visitors have failed to score in six of their last 10 outings and we believe that streak will continue against the defensively solid home team.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ellis Stevens
