Dundalk hoping history repeats itself in FAI Cup final

It seems almost miraculous given the limited number of “big” teams there are in the League of Ireland at any particular point in time that successive cup finals are not routinely played out between the same two sides but tomorrow’s will be only the third to pit the previous year’s opponents against each other again.

The challenge for Cork City is to make a little history because on both of the previous occasions the holders have triumphed.

Break the pattern

Shamrock Rovers beat Dolphin in the 1930s and Limerick in the 1960s and it will not be easy to break the pattern although their victory at the start of the season in the President’s Cup and two since in the league suggest that the task might not be entirely beyond John Caulfield’s men.

Dundalk start as favourites, though not nearly such strong ones as the Cork manager would have us believe, and have by now won over most of those who had lingering doubts about their rightful place in the list of great teams from this league.

City, indeed, might be forgiven for feeling a little sorry for themselves because they have looked pretty good themselves this season. The aim will be to be better again next year although a victory here would mark a first important step towards turning their current relationship with the Oriel Park outfit into a rivalry that might be remembered as having been great.

They will hardly have a better chance than this with Dundalk having had to play one of the toughest games in the club’s history on Thursday night in Russia. The depth to Stephen Kenny’s squad has enabled him to cope remarkably well with all of the many challenges this season has thrown at the champions but there is no getting away from the fact that the preparations are far from ideal.

Kenny will surely have to make a change or two and if he reverts to something approaching the side selected for the drawn semi-final at Oriel then there could be half a dozen.

Ciarán Kilduff seems likely, in any case, to come in for David McMillan with Stephen O’Donnell set to start too as long as there has been no problems in the wake of Thursday’s game. Robbie Benson could feature if he has recovered from his hamstring strain. Alan Keane, Paddy Barrett and John Mountney are all in contention too.

For Caulfield, the hope will be that much the same side that was beaten so decisively in Oriel a few weeks ago can assert themselves more emphatically this time out.

City certainly knew how to beat their rivals earlier in the season but last time out they were a little unlucky then completely overwhelmed as Daryl Horgan scored from a free that his side should probably not have had and the hosts then did what they do best by catching their opponents on the counter attack.

Last encounter

That last encounter was a thrilling one with the importance of the result to both sides entirely obvious in the way they threw themselves into the contest.

For Dundalk, it must surely be a challenge to raise themselves to those levels of intensity once again and, though the occasion will suffer if they fall short for once, even they might somehow end up better off by having the bar raised again for them next year by a Cork side with a cup success to spur them on.

Just don’t try to tell Kenny that, though.