Ireland. Premier Division — Tips and bets

finishing in the top three is the goal, then St. Patricks are off the pace at present, though there is still time for them to fulfil their objective. A win in this fixture would close the gap, which is currently six points wide, but beating Shamrock, who currently sit 2nd, will be anything but easy.

Less than two months ago, it looked as though St. Patrick’s hopes of finishing in the top three were a thing of the past, though they’ve since rallied and are thus now back in the hunt. Monday’s hosts have avoided defeat in each of their last four league matches, while they’ve won each of their last two. Beating Finn Harps and UC Dublin isn’t exactly anything to shout about, though such wins will at least give the hosts confidence ahead of what is likely to be a testing encounter.

Up and down away from has often prevented them from getting seriously close to the top three, though St. Patrick’s efforts at home have been solid this season. Only two teams in Ireland’s Premier Division have accumulated more points at home than Harry Kenny’s men, who’ve won six, drawn three and lost three of their 12 matches at Richmond Park.

A lack of offensive power hasn’t exactly helped Monday’s hosts, who’ve scored just 11 goals in 12 home games, though they have at least defended well, shipping only ten goals in front of their own fans. What’s more, they’ve scored in each of their last four at home, conceding just twice during that time.

The visitors are currently top of the away league table, while they meet a St Pats side who have had a mixed return at their own ground this term. They have lost three times in front of their own support, including a 3-0 defeat against Waterford in their last game here. That doesn’t bode well, neither does the fact that the hosts have conceded seven times in their last four home matches.

The Bohs come here with an excellent defensive record, keeping a clean sheet in 75% of their trips. They’ve managed to edge games on the road this term, winning four of their last five matches on their travels without conceding. They are coming off a run of two 1-0 wins in three meetings with St Pats, so we’re backing the visitors to win to nil here. They’ve won to nil in 62% of their away games, so we think the visitors are well priced to pull that off again.

Unfortunately for the hosts, they’re up against a visiting side that has been very good on the road. Only league leaders Dundalk have accumulated more points than Shamrock away from home this season. Having won seven of their 11 travelling matches, no team in the division has picked up more away wins than Shamrock, though the visitors have lost each of their other four on the road, so they’re not exactly infallible.

From a goal-scoring point of view, Shamrock, who’ve notched 15 in 11 on the road, have performed well away from the comforts of home, especially of late, as they’ve scored five in their last three travelling matches. However, they’ve not covered themselves in glory during that time, as they’ve shipped six goals in their last five away games.

In the betting, given the form of both in their recent home and away games, ‘Both Teams to Score’ appears to be slightly overpriced. Not only have St. Patrick’s and Shamrock scored in each of their last eight combined respective home and away games, but the pair shared no less than 2.58 expected goals for when they played each other at this venue back in March.

After making a dreadful start to the season, Cork could move within four points of Derry with a home win this weekend. The hosts have had a poor campaign to date, while Derry are contenders for a European place after moving into the top four. However, the middle of the Irish Premier Division is packed quite tight, so there’s some way to go before the Candystripes can feel secure in the race for the Europa League. Can they boost their chances with three points in this weekend’s trip?

Cork are slowly making their way back from their poor start, but they are still winless in four matches. They head into this clash with an eye on Europe, as they are starting their Europa League campaign in July. That’s a chance for them to rescue what has been a dismal campaign to date, as they’ve won just six of their 21 league games. That hardly marks them out as a side to back this weekend, especially given that they’ve won only two of their nine matches at their own ground in the league.

Derry have a solid away record this term, as they come into this clash with just two defeats in 11 away trips. They’ve lost just one of their last six matches in the league, but they’ve also only won once in that time. Too many draws has been an issue for the Candystripes so far, despite them moving into the top four in the league. Will they pick up a much-needed win in this clash, or are they set to struggle at a ground where they haven’t won in six visits.

Cork have only lost once in their last five games, with that loss coming against champions Dundalk. That 2-0 loss was the only time in their last five home games that Cork have conceded more than once. They’ve got a decent record at the back at home, conceding just a goal per game at their own ground. However, their big issue comes up front, where they’ve scored just seven times in nine home matches.

Overall, Cork have seen under 2.5 goals in 89% of their home games, while they’ve seen less than three goals in 11 straight league games. Given that 60% of Derry’s Premier Division clashes have finished with fewer than three goals scored, we can’t see this being a high scoring affair. We’re going with under 2.5 goals as our tip for this clash.

Waterford should boost their fourth place ambitions this weekend, having picked up a huge result in their last trip. They won 3-0 at St Patrick’s, which saw them close the gap on the fifth-placed outfit. In order to keep closing the gap, they need to start turning draws into wins. However, scoring three goals in each of their last two matches suggests they now have the firepower to pull that off.

Waterford are heading to a Fin Harps side which has lost six times at home in eight games this season. The hosts have lost 11 times overall, while three of their last four games here have been defeats. The visitors should be able to add to their opponent’s poor home form, while we think that Waterford are well priced for the win, given how poor Finn Harps have been at home this term.

Dundalk have won their last 13 matches

Bouth teams to score
Dundalk win 2:1