Bohemians – Derry City, Irish Eircom League
2004-06-04 20.45 CET
Pick: Bohemians
Stake: 3%
Odds: 1,75
Final reasons
Bohemians finally seem to have found their form. Their opening of the season has been quite bad much due to injuries which has caused them to change their starting eleven almost in front of every game. However, these worries have come to and end and the team is now back at almost full strength. Their recent matches have shown signs of improvement and have resulted in two victories against Waterford and Saint Patricks and one draw against table toppers Shelbourne. The timing for struggling Derry City for this tough clash could hardly have been worse for them; they are in a downward spiral and have not been able to score in their latest six league matches and they have also recently lost their manager. We believe that a rejuvenated Bohemians will win easily against Derry City tonight and we suggest a 3% stake.
General comment about the game
The Irish Premier division, Eircom league, continues tonight with its 14th round. Title contenders Bohemians will be visited by Derry City and we believe this to be the best bet for today. Bohemians has together with their local rivals Shelbourne been the major forces in Irish football for long. For the last six seasons one of these teams have won the title and on most occasions the other team has become runners up. Last year it was a tight title rally almost to the very end. Bohemians lost their form in the final rounds which opened up for another Shelbourne title. But in all it was Bohemians bad start that was the main factor behind them not reaching their title winning goal last season. Also this year one of these two teams is the favourites to win the title. Bohemians two most important new signings for this season are midfielder James Keddy and striker Tony Grant, both from Shamrock Rovers. Unfortunately for Bohemians they have started the new campaign just as bad as last year. After ten rounds they had only two victories and were well behind league leaders Shelbourne. This bad run was much due to injuries which caused them to change their starting eleven all the time. However, two rounds ago when they faced Shelbourne away in a game that ended goalless it was the first time for the new season that Bohemians could name their best team. The squad is now at almost full strength and manager Stephen Kenny can name the same starting eleven as in last game tonight. Last game at home against Saint Patricks was a real improvement for Bohemians. They played their best football of the season and were better than the visitors in all parts of the area. The final score was 3-1 to the hosts. Only absentee tonight in the Bohemians squad is young striker Stephen Ward who is still struggling with his injury. However, he has only been peripheral in the manager’s plans in recent weeks.
Derry City is struggling for the moment. They reside second from bottom only one point from bottom place. Their current form is really bad; only one point from their latest six league games and no goals scored! In the last game they played at home against Drogheda and lost with 2-0. This caused their manager Gavin Dykes to resign and former captain Peter Hutton has been appointed new caretaker manager. The club is now looking for a more permanent solution and according to the Irish press today, former Waterford manager Jimmy McGeough is short listed for the job.
So far this season the defence have been quite solid but that has not been enough when they have such big problems up front. Only five goals in the first thirteen matches must be improved if they are to stay out of the relegation battle. Derry City has injury doubts over defender Clive Delaney, midfielder Davy Byrne and striker Gary Beckett for tonight’s game.
Recent games for home team
|
2004-05-31 |
Bohemians-Saint Patricks |
3-1 |
|
2004-05-28 |
Shelbourne-Bohemians |
0-0 |
|
2004-05-14 |
Waterford-Bohemians |
0-1 |
|
2004-05-07 |
Bohemians-Longford |
0-0 |
|
2004-04-30 |
Bohemians-Cork City |
2-3 |
Recent games for away team
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2004-05-29 |
Derry City-Drogheda |
0-2 |
|
2004-05-21 |
Shamrock-Derry City |
1-0 |
|
2004-05-14 |
Shelbourne-Derry City |
1-0 |
|
2004-05-08 |
Derry City-Saint Patrick |
0-0 |
|
2004-05-01 |
Derry City-Waterford |
0-1 |
Home table
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Bohemians |
7 |
1 |
4 |
2 |
10-10 |
7 |
Away table
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Derry City |
6 |
1 |
1 |
4 |
3-6 |
4 |
Links for this game
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// SportsObserver 040604
