Stuart Byrne column: Shels might be rocking but St Pat's defeat can spur them to title glory
League of Ireland legend and Mirror Sport columnist Stuart Byrne has the final word every Friday
People are pointing the finger at Shelbourne for making hard work of the title race, but the chasing pack get off scot-free.?
No team is putting their best foot forward at the moment, but that’s the pressure at play. It’s all on the line so instead of criticising, just embrace the drama.
There’s scrutiny of Shels for so many obvious reasons but whatever about being the leaders, Damien Duff is the main reason. He’s done a fantastic job in a short space of time and is well able to deal with the pressure. I don’t buy this theory that ‘it’s getting to him’.
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Duff won Premier League titles with Chelsea and 100 caps for Ireland. He’s spent his whole life in the spotlight, dealing with pressure. You think this is new to him? Clearly, he’s learned a lot from Mourinho and is cut from the same cloth of absorbing pressure and deflecting it away from his players.
Let’s be honest, Shels wouldn’t be where they are today without Duff. Heavy is the head that wears the crown and when you’ve led the league since March - bar one week - you’re there to be knocked down. Those Shels players are constantly looking over their shoulders. It’s a heightened sense of awareness that never goes away. I’ve been there many times.
I hear some people saying ‘oh, you’re better off being second or third, just off the pace and putting the pressure on’. Nonsense. Football doesn’t work like that.
The narrative now is that Shels are throwing it away, that the pressure is starting to get to them and they’re cracking. I know what they’re going through and when you haven’t been in this position before, it’s unchartered territory. That’s why Shamrock Rovers deserve enormous credit for winning four leagues in-a-row, and the same goes for any side retaining a title. It’s a mind-bending, head melt of an experience to set the pace like Shels have. But all they need to do is maintain their levels over the remaining games.
Everyone is focusing on the games Shels haven’t won, but nobody is talking about the chasing pack faltering time after time. It feels like Derry have had a dozen chances to move past Shels by now, and haven’t. Rovers should be closer, but they’re not.
I’m not getting the violin out for Shels either. They need to take the criticism on the chin, but ultimately stick to the task. They don’t need to find another gear. They don’t need to improve. Just stay consistent, play to your levels and watch the rest fall away.
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I was at the Shels-Pats game on Monday and it was a cracker. It had everything you love about high stakes games at this time of year. But even though Shels lost, they’ll take loads from the performance as it was the best they’ve played in ages, and the goals were probably the club’s best in 20 years.
So I don’t think Shels are ‘gone’ at all. They could be coming right at just the right time and will relish Sunday’s game at Rovers, where they’ve done well in the past.
Every game is so unpredictable at the moment, but that’s only because we’ve so many teams in contention for the league. What’s not to love? I’m fascinated to see which players - across all those teams - stand up and drag their team over the line, and which lads will go missing. Believe me, a lot of lads will go into hiding now that the pressure is on. It happens in every dressing room. We’ll learn a lot about players in the month ahead.
But while people are pointing the finger at Shels, they’re still in the driving seat with the points in the bag. And I’d take that all day long as the rest are running out of games.
DUFF HAS ACE UP HIS SLEEVE
Rayhaan Tulloch’s goal against St Pat’s was a thing of beauty and he has the ability to be a title winner for Shelbourne. Snapped up during the summer, the former Dundalk loanee looks like a player with lots to offer.
I watched him closely at Tolka Park on Monday and he was in and out of the game and I wondered why Damien Duff was keeping him on. But then that goal! Wow. Clearly, Duff knows there’s a player in there. I was struck that he didn’t celebrate. He's too modest, or maybe he just lacks a bit of confidence. If he starts believing in himself, he could be anything.
Shels have definitely missed a cutting edge since Will Jarvis was recalled by Hull City and Tulloch - signed in July - has only shown flashes of his potential. You don’t want to put too much pressure on a lad, but that goal on Monday could be the making of him. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him flourish in the run-in - and in Tallaght on Sunday - as he’s a player who will get you something out of nothing.
BRADLEY BAN IS NONSENSE
So Stephen Bradley has got a one-game suspension for his comments about referee Damien MacGraith and won’t be in the dugout against Shels on Sunday. It’s a slap on the wrist from the league, but it’s also a load of nonsense. MacGraith made a serious blunder with that peno decision in Derry and was rightly called out
I hope this doesn’t stop managers from speaking their minds. Nobody goes out to hammer anyone, but there has to be accountability in the game. This is a professional sport and the highest level of football in this country. There are huge consequences for everyone, as a result.
Players face repercussions if they perform badly, managers get the sack if results go down the drain. So if League of Ireland referees think they’re under pressure on that stage, they should walk a mile in the players' or managers' boots. There’s no comparison.
BOHS-DERRY COULD BE A BELTER
Like a Werewolf at full moon, something comes out in us all at League of Ireland games under the lights on a cold, dark night. Monday’s game between Shels and Pat’s at Tolka Park had everything you love about the game, but it wouldn’t have felt the same in May, June or July.
And I think Bohs-Derry City in the FAI Cup semi-final tonight has all the ingredients for another cracker with all the same ingredients thrown into the mix. But I can’t call this game. You can make a strong case for either team. I just hope both sides go toe-to-toe and leave nothing behind as it could go the distance.
On Sunday, I strongly fancy Drogheda to see off Wexford. Speaking to one League of Ireland manager recently, they made the point that Drogheda would be one of the best teams to be relegated in history, if they go down. I don’t think they will ,and reaching an FAI Cup final should spur them on even more in their survival bid.
But it’s disappointing that once again we have a Friday night with only one league game - Galway United against Dundalk. I get that Rovers played in Europe last night and that’s why they host Shelbourne on Sunday, but it’s all so fragmented. Once again we’ve games spread over Monday’, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays - it’s all so disjointed and disrupts the rhythm. I hate that.
Players are conditioned to optimising their performance for a Friday and the spread of games has a knock-on effect and makes it hard to prepare for.
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