Ireland. First Division: tournament table
№
MP
W
D
L
G
Pts
1
Cork City
23
17
3
3
46:15
54
2
Bray
23
10
7
6
46:30
37
3
UCD
23
11
3
9
36:27
36
4
Longford Town
23
8
7
8
27:30
31
5
Cobh Ramblers
23
9
4
10
25:32
31
6
Wexford
23
7
7
9
27:32
28
7
Athlone Town
23
7
6
10
21:27
27
8
Kerry
23
6
8
9
24:29
26
9
Treaty United
23
5
8
10
22:34
23
10
Finn Harps
23
5
7
11
20:38
22
We're off to the Republic of Ireland, because Shelbourne are in action against Drogheda United. Both sides have made a fine start to the First Division season. Third-placed Shels are only six points off top spot, while Drogheda are just two points adrift of the leaders UCD.
This is a clash between two of the best defences in the league. Shelbourne have leaked just 11 goals in 15 games (no-one in the league has a better record), while Drogheda have let in just 12 goals.
To underline that defensive excellence, Drogheda are on a run of four wins to nil in the league, and they haven't conceded a league goal since the first week of May. Shelbourne are looking for a third straight victory, and have only leaked two goals in their last four league outings.
With both teams defending well, I'm a little surprised to see Under 2.5 Goals trading at 1.94. The last four league meetings between the two have featured fewer than three goals, and we can perhaps dismiss Shels' 7-2 League Cup win over Drogheda as a bizarre outlier.