Dundalk pay for caution

Before bringing his team to Dublin for last weekend's game against St Patrick's Athletic at Richmond Park it was all pretty straightforward as far as Jim McLaughlin was concerned. "We've done well so far," said the Dundalk manager of a team that had gone unbeaten since the opening day down in Cork, "but these games will tell us whether we're ready to be up there with the big boys." Two games on and the signs so far are far from good.

Sunday's 1-0 defeat for Dundalk at Inchicore ended the terrible home run of St Patrick's and last night, with a remarkably similar performance in front of around 1,500 of their own fans, Dundalk allowed Shelbourne to score only their second win on the road thanks to an early Dessie Baker goal. The victory takes the Dubliners to second place in the Premier Division table.

For the early part of the evening, the Lilywhites suffered from many of the same problems that had been apparent on Sunday. Against a team that likes nothing better than to press forward with speed, they sat back, attempting to contain and rarely threatening to strike out on the counter-attack.

A midfield that had produced so many of the team's goals in the early part of the season failed to take command of the centre of the field, where Tony Sheridan was given time and space to wander and where Pat Fenlon and Dave Campell looked more industrious than the local players.

Also like Sunday, however, they began to come to life late on when Brian Byrne, David Hoey and Mick Doohan all went close, even if Shelbourne goalkeeper Alan Gough was only really called on to make one save of genuine quality.

Once again the introduction of Raymond McCoy seemed to have a positive effect on the team's ability to stretch opponents. Just eight minutes after his arrival the hosts created the chance that should have produced the equaliser. Byrne got out wide and, having got by stand-in full back Mick Neville, he sent in a curling cross which Noel Melvin sidefooted over both goalkeeper and goal.

Sorely missed, however, was Raymond Campbell's presence on the right and while Byrne more than once caused the visiting defence problems by moving wide that meant that Peter Withnell was left without support in the centre, where he repeatedly lost out to the height and reach of Tony McCarthy and Pat Scully.

In the dying minutes, Dundalk's own big man from the back might have made the breakthrough his team needed when he picked up the ball on the edge of the area and curled it just wide of the post with his left foot.

With just seconds remaining Byrne finally got the opportunity to take matters into his own hands. Picking the ball up just inside the Shelbourne half, he seemed to have the speed to beat his man or the support to put others in. McCoy and Withnell both waited, but having rounded McCarthy, the Dubliner went for goal himself with a poor shot driven straight at the goalkeeper.

The first half was a more scrappy affair with little, Baker's goal aside, between the two sides. That goal came after just seven minutes of play, Sheridan getting down the left and sending in what looked a harmless enough cross until a minor deflection left Steve Williams less sure of the best course of action than Baker, who poked home from six yards.

Had the home side shown the same talent for hitting the target area from wide positions things might have have been level within a matter of minutes but neither Withnell nor Byrne could control their crosses. Tom McNulty, brought back into a reshuffled midfield for the injured Raymond Campbell, actually came closest to scoring for the hosts with a 25-yard shot that flew high, but not too wide of the mark. But at the other end Mark Rutherford went closer to adding a second for the Dubliners with Williams being forced to get down quickly to his left and push the ball wide after the winger had cut in from the left and let loose.

Dundalk: Williams; Reddish, Brady, Doohan, Crawley; Hoey, McNulty, Melvin, Carlyle; Withnell, Byrne. Subs: McCoy and Wigg for Crawley and Carlyle (67 mins).

Shelbourne: Gough; Costello, Scully, McCarthy, Neville; Baker, Fenlon, Sheridan, Campbell, Rutherford; S Geoghegan.

Referee: H Byrne (Dublin).