Longford Town seeking a win in taking on Kerry FC at Bishopsgate

Kerry may not be winning many matches in their debut season but there is no doubt that they are a welcome arrival to the First Division.

 The new club are doing everything well having got their ground in great condition and by all accounts they have sold all their season tickets and have near full houses at most games since the commencement of the 2023 league campaign.

Manager Billy Dennehy is a very experienced footballer who has progressed to being a very shrewd manager and there is no doubt that he will make this new team a very hard to beat unit in the near future.

 When you take on a new squad who have never played together previously it will take some time to  mould them into a formidable side capable of winning games on a regular basis. 

The teams played each other twice this season with the Town winning both games. When Kerry travelled to Bishopsgate earlier in the season the Town won 2-0  with both goals coming from Joshua Giurgi.

The second game played in Kerry was a much closer affair that the Town won 3-2.

 Stephen Meaney opened the scoring for Longford in the 8th minute. Captain Shane Elworthy put the Town two up just before half-time with an excellent team goal. Sean McGrath got the home team back in the game when he scored in the 62nd minute. 

The Town got their third goal in the 68th minute and that came from an unfortunate og from the club's most experienced player Matt Keane. 

Keane who played previously for Treaty United is a no nonsense midfielder who knows how to control a game. Keane will bring through the many young players who have joined the club this season. 

A full season for most of the current Kerry squad will give manager Dennehy a great help going into next season. 

Last weekend Kerry were at home to Treaty United in a Munster derby and yet again they were unlucky in another defeat.

 Kerry took the lead after 1 minute when Sean McGrath put the home side in the lead. Mark Ludden equalised for Treaty in the 24th minute and the visitors went ahead when Dean George scored a very well taken goal on 31 mins. 

Former Town player Enda Curran put the visitors three one up in the 74th minute but this Kerry team don't give up and they got a consolation goal in the 90th minute when striker Leo Gaxha scored. The former Sheffield United player is a busy striker who is clearly a threat in attack.

Make no mistake about it, this young club are only finding their feet and with experience they will cause many surprise results in the coming seasons. 

The Town will go into Saturday's game in a confident mood after coming away from the RSC on Friday last with a very creditable 2-2 draw. 

Waterford went into the game in a very confident mood and with a full time club they were expected to win.

Striker Idowu gave the home side the lead after only six minutes but the Town bounced back after 18 minutes when Gary Armstrong scored a cracking goal. 

Only 3 minutes later the home side regained the lead and this goal came from the penalty spot. Ronan Coughlan scored from the spot to bring his goal tally for the season to an amazing 28 goals so far for this season. It was end to end football in the RSC and it was two one to the home side but around seven minutes into the second half the Town equalised and it was from the penalty spot. 

Beineon O'Brien-Whitmarsh took the penalty and blasted the ball to the net past the experienced Paul Martin in the home goal. 

Both teams had chances to retake the lead but Jack Brady had a stormer for the Town as he denied the Blues a chance to get closer to runaway league leaders Galway. 

This was an excellent performance for the Town who welcomed captain Shane Elworthy back after missing quite a few games through injury and his experience at the back has been a huge plus for manager Stephen Henderson.

 This has been the busiest mid-season signing session for many years. Dylan Hand, who played with the club a few seasons ago, has returned to the club and his experience in defence is a big help for manager Henderson as he tries to get his team into a promotion play-off spot. 

Adam Wixted has joined the club also and he like Hand previously played with Warrenpoint in the Irish League. Lewis Temple has joined the club on loan from Shelbourne. Lewis came through the Shelbourne academy and he is expected to be the next young Irish player to go over to England. 

The return of striker Jordan Adeyemo to the club has been a huge boost. The injury list is also improving as long time absentee  Derek Daly on the bench at the RSC and who was brought on in the second half  

Losing Cian Byrne, who was recalled from his loan from Bohemians, is a huge loss but the arrival of Dylan Hand is another boost for the promotion hopes. 

With fourteen games left there is no doubt that the Town can pick up the points needed but hopefully no more injuries. 

A win against Kerry FC on Saturday night would be good preparation for the visit of St Patrick’s Athletic who come to Bishopsgate on Sunday week in the FAI Cup, kick-off 6pm.

SSE Airtricity League First Division

Longford Town v Kerry FC 

At Bishopsgate 

Saturday July 15

Kick-off 7.30pm