Wexford facing a daunting challenge

SOCCER LEAGUE CUP FINAL: Wexford Youths v Derry City,Today, Ferrycarrig Park, Kick-off - 7.30pm, Live on Setanta Ireland

NO STRANGERS to cup success after a string of Inter League titles and the FAI Youth Cup they won last year, Wexford Youths still face a daunting challenge in what will be the biggest game of the club's history tonight at Ferrycarrig Park where Derry City will be intent on continuing their domination of the Eircom League Cup.

Derry have won the competition for the last three years in a row and victory this evening would be a ninth overall while there have also been another couple of final appearances down the years.

A few of those wins have come against teams that might well be described as "less fancied", but tonight they face the classic underdogs. "Nobody expects us to win," says Youths manager Mick Wallace. But the fact that all 3,600 tickets for the game have been sold, mainly to supporters of the home side, suggests the locals still hold out some hope of having something to celebrate come the end of the night.

The club has won four Inter League Youths titles and appeared in another two finals over the last eight years while last year's success in the competition combined with the defeat of Dundalk in the FAI Youths Cup made them the first side to complete that particular double in some 75 years.

So they are not entirely unused to either pressure or winning in spite of it.

Still, Derry should present a rather more difficult assignment for the young part-timers. "Well," says Wallace, "the team played Cork in the semi-final and that night was a challenge but I'm pleased to say the lads came through it.

"Our lot had an average age of just 20 but almost all of them had played in finals with us before. That stood to us because while Cork had a lot of the ball and created maybe a dozen good chances, we defended very well and that's allowed. We created maybe four chances on the night but the difference is that we took one of ours."

With a squad drawn from across Wexford county, local interest in the game is high. But even Wallace was surprised at the speed with which 800 tickets returned by Derry City were snapped up by locals.

Both sides are close to full strength for the tie although Wexford are without Paul Murphy (cruciate ligament) and Conor Wallace (shoulder) while Derry City travel without Peter Hutton (hernia) or Ciaran Martyn (ankle) and have a doubt about the fitness of full-back Stephen Gray (thigh).

In the weekend's league games, meanwhile, Cobh travel to Sligo this evening urgently needing to build on the draw earned against Cork City last week.

Rovers will be without left back Chris Butler who broke his thigh bone and shattered his knee cap in a car crash this week. The injuries are likely to sideline the defender for anything up to a year.

In the First Division, Waterford United visit Longford Town this evening (8pm) while tomorrow leaders Dundalk are at Monaghan United (3pm) and Kildare County host Limerick 37 at 6pm.