Dundalk live up to their title D-day reputation

They almost had us fooled for a while. Three wins in eight days for Shelbourne and St Patrick's Athletic a goal behind midway through the first half of Sunday's crucial game with Dundalk, it looked, just for a while there, as if it was all over.

It was a false alarm, of course. Everybody knows that the National League title has to be won or lost in Oriel Park, or at the very least in a last day of the campaign clash with Dundalk. And sure enough, goals from Paul Osam, Ian Gilzean, Eddie Gormley and Martin Reilly ensured that Shelbourne must head north on the M1 next weekend needing a result of some kind to be certain of taking the championship title.

Six times in 10 years Dundalk have been in the thick of it on the last day. A decade ago they leapfrogged St Patrick's to lift the title with a 2-1 home victory, going on to beat Derry in the Cup final a week later. Three years later in Turners' Cross a 1-0 win was enough to put the Louth side two points clear of the southerners in the season's final table.

In 1992 Shelbourne wrapped up the title by beating Dundalk and 12 months later, after their bus had broken down on the way to the game, Bohemians saw their title hopes evaporate when a late goal from Tom McNulty sent them into a three way play-off for the title which Cork went on to win.

In 1995 Dundalk were doing it for themselves again, beating Galway United at home as Derry slipped up in Athlone to snatch the championship by a point, and in '96 St Patrick's Athletic's defeat of the champions at Oriel guaranteed them first place. Now Shelbourne must go there and get a point.

Nothing to it, if the previous meetings between the two clubs this season are anything to go by. The Dubliners have beaten Jim McLaughlin's side time and again. Dumping them out of both cups and winning home and away in the league. Piece of cake, eh? Yeah, sure.

Dundalk played some of their best football of this season at Richmond Park on Sunday and the fact that they have been pretty much humiliated by Shelbourne this season is unlikely to put them in the humour for doing Damien Richardson's men any favours.

To their credit, Shelbourne are in the middle of a tremendous run of form. They needed a bit of luck against both UCD and Shamrock Rovers and got it each time, but few could dispute the character they've shown in either match or, for that matter, in the marvellous win over Bohemians at Dalymount a couple of weekends ago.

Had St Patrick's scored four without reply on Sunday then goal difference might have entered the equation but it would take something approaching a miracle for the title to return to Richmond Park if Shelbourne can manage even a draw now. Gormley and co would have to win by six in Kilkenny, so it's down to hoping that Dundalk can maintain their tradition of messing with the script on the last day. If they play nearly as well again on Friday night, though, that is far from out of the question.

While first and third place will be sorted out on Friday night - Shamrock Rovers and Cork play that night despite the fact that the Dundalk match is live on television - the tussle to avoid the relegation play-off the following day will be almost as interesting.

The remarkable form shown by UCD over the last couple of months looks likely to help them escape the prospect of a nerve-racking two-leg tie with Limerick. They do need a point to be sure though, while Harps will survive as long as they don't lose in Sligo as Derry are beating Drogheda.

That means that, as the weekend approaches, last year's league champions look the favourites to play Dave Connell's Limerick side twice next week.

Felix Healy said from long before Christmas that the lack of a decent break last summer had taken its toll on his players but the prospect of a team that was, by some way, the best in the land 12 months ago, going down next week is simply astonishing.

Something, no doubt, for Friday's victors to ponder on Saturday afternoon as their hangovers start to clear and they turn their attention to friendly tournaments and the more serious business of preparing for the Champions' League pre-qualifying round.