The memory of securing a draw against Dundalk two months ago when goalkeeper Dean Delany gave a man-of-the-match performance also puts Heary’s team in a positive frame of mind facing the league leaders.

“Their recent results show you the calibre of the team. I said at the start of the season I thought Dundalk were the most likely to win the league. They have that extra hunger after last year’s disappointment,” said Heary.

“This is another difficult game, but one the lads are looking forward to. We can’t go out thinking we’ll sit back because, if you do that, Dundalk will punish you. We have to take the game to them, without leaving gaps they can exploit.”

The Bohemian manager may have a near-full hand to deal from, depending on how some players recover from knocks received last Monday against Longford Town. Captain Dave Mulcahy was out for that match and faces a late fitness test for a tight hamstring.

Defender Eoin Wearen (groin) is still sidelined but, with the progressive return to full match fitness of Anto Murphy, Bohemians have several options across the back line. Left-back Jack Memery has returned to training following college exams.

Dan Byrne topped an outstanding performance in defence against Shamrock Rovers with a goal on Monday. “He has been excellent for us, and he’s there on merit. He has kept most of the top centre-forwards in the league at bay,” said Heary.

The Bohemian manager hopes to be able to move Stephen Beattie up front following his several weeks in the right-back position. “He offers us a bit more in attack with the pace he has.”

Striker Dinny Corcoran returned from suspension to score against Longford Town and his return allowed Jason Byrne to be rested and also to “take the pressure off him”.

Eighteen-year-old Gavin Moore will again be on the bench as substitute goalkeeper. Stepping into the senior Bohemian squad to replace the departed Lee Murphy means he missed a cup semi-final 4-1 victory on Monday with his under-19 team-mates and will now miss a final on Friday.

“It’s been tough on Jason Byrne. With Dinny suspended and injured before that, Jay has been asked to play nearly every minute of every game over the last few weeks, which is not what we expected.

“With Dinny back, we can mix it up again and between them, we’ll be back scoring and pushing on up the table again.”

While Bohs have struggled in front of goal in recent outings, Heary was delighted with improvements at the back.

“Rovers are a very experienced team and put us under a lot of pressure with the amount of possession they had in the second half,” he said. “But our lads stood up to everything and we limited them to a couple of half-chances.

“It was only our third clean sheet of the season, so it’s something we’ve been looking at. But for that to come away to one of the best sides in the league is an achievement.”

One problem area had been the position of left-back and Heary thinks he has now found the solution. He said: “We needed to improve and Derek Pender has really shored things up there in recent weeks.

“But there are knock-on effects too. Moving Pender meant dropping Steven Beattie back to right-back, which obviously weakened our attacking strengths.

“With Anto Murphy getting back to fitness now, we’ve now a solid and experienced back four to choose from. Dano Byrne is the only inexperienced player there and he’s been absolutely fantastic for us.”

Skipper Dave Mulcahy will not be risked tonight after coming off with a tight hamstring against Rovers on Friday, while Eoin Wearen is also out as he awaits the results of a scan on a groin injury he suffered in training on Thursday.

As well an opportunity to reach a cup semi-final, tonight’s opposition also provide Heary with a chance to gauge just how far some of his younger players have progressed. He said: “You only have to look at their teamsheet to realise what a big test this will be for our lads. Stephen Rice, Pat Sullivan, Pat Flynn – all tough league winners.

“It’s a massive test for us and a great opportunity for our players to up their game and to test themselves against players with great experience.”

And it is young players such as 18-year-old Jake Hyland who will continue to benefit. “It’s a competition we want to win and you have to keep faith with lads like Jake who have got us this far in the first place.

“He’s scored three goals in the last two rounds (1 v UCD, 2 v St Pat’s) so he’s already justified his selection. He’s progressing fast and he should be in the Ireland Under-19 team.”

“Jason [Byrne] was unlucky with a couple last week but we cannot rely only on him. We need someone to help him turn chances into goals.”

With Dinny Corcoran suspended, veteran Byrne is the only out-and-out striker available, and this may be putting particular pressure on him, according to Heary.

“Any striker can have a dry spell but Jason knows it will come right for him because he is getting into good positions.”

Among the midfielders helping to create the openings, Paddy Kavanagh was “brilliant” last week, according to Heary. But it will take supreme effort from all his players to get results over the next eight days.

“In our next two league games we’re playing teams who are contending for the title and a very decent Longford side [in the EA Cup on Monday]. They all have good players, with a lot of experience and the clubs have paid a lot of money for them.

“These will be three tough games, but we will have no fear playing anyone. We just need a bit of luck.”

Filling the full-back positions remains a particular challenge, and with Darragh Reynor and Philly McCabe leaving the club, Jack Memery busy with exams, and Derek Pender (hamstring) facing a late fitness test, that challenge has increased even more.

However, Roberto Lopes returns from suspension and Anto Murphy and Aidan Price came through the Drogheda game well despite fitness concerns earlier in the week.

Goalkeeper Lee Murphy has also left Bohemians for personal reasons and Heary is looking to the July transfer window as an opportunity to freshen his squad and fill some gaps, albeit within severe budgetary constraints.

Meanwhile, the Bohs backroom team are looking to the future, having signed seven under-19 players in the past week. “We had the best under-17s this year and we’ve committed some of them to the under-19s. This is a positive for the future,” said Heary.

“We took the game to UCD, we didn’t sit back, and on another night Jason [Byrne] could have had two or three goals. We can build on that, knowing that we’re playing well, we’re doing things right.

“We need wins, and we go out for every game aiming to win. Friday’s game will be no different.

“If we can get a win it changes the table around, as there’s not much between the teams in the middle.”

Heary considers his side to have been unlucky in several recent games and is hoping for a change of fortune.

“We’ve had a few things go against us, even going back to the [Shamrock] Rovers game where a goal was disallowed that shouldn’t have been. Little things seem to have turned games against us.

“We’re hoping that this will change, even if we get goals off Jason’s behind, or the bounce comes for us and the ball goes in.”

Earlier this season, Bohemians went 2-0 up in Dalymount against Drogheda, but were then pegged back for a 2-2 draw.

“We’re going up there on a positive note, even though we’re missing a few players. There’s an opportunity for other players to step up to the mark,” said Heary.

Bohemians’ defence, already shuffled to move Derek Pender to the left and bring Steven Beattie in at right back, will need to be changed again for Friday.

Central defender Roberto Lopes is suspended following his contested sending-off against UCD and Aidan Price (quad tear) is unlikely to be fit for selection.

Meanwhile, Anto Murphy (hamstring) is back in full training and made a brief subsitute appearance against St Patrick’s Athletic in the EA Sports Cup ten days ago. But he may not be fit to start.
Two younger players, Eoin Wearen and Dan Byrne, may form the central defence against Drogheda.

Bohemians have been finding goals hard to get in league games, with the established goal-scorers all having near-misses. “The chances are coming but we’re not putting the ball in the net,” said Heary.

Striker Dinny Corcoran will miss Friday’s game, serving the first additional suspension of two for his sending-off against Derry City two weeks ago. Jake Hyland, 18, scored twice in the EA Sports Cup win over St Patrick’s but Heary is being careful not to over-expose him.

“He’s still on a learning curve, and he’s just come off a long season with the under-19s. The last thing we want to do is just to throw him in and then he’s wrecked before we’ve started.

“We’ll continue to put him in and take him out, and show him what it’s all about. He’s definitely one for the future.”

“After good results against strong teams, fans can sometimes think ‘ah it’s only UCD’. It’s important that the players don’t think that way. UCD have very good players – some of the best young players in the league, so you can never write them off. We can’t let our standards slip.”

Bohs kicked off the 2014 league season with a comprehensive 3-0 victory against the Students at the UCD Bowl and matched that scoreline at the same venue three days later in the EA Sports Cup, but Heary believes Callaghan’s side will pose a much greater threat this time around.

“Aaron had only just come in then,” he said. “He’s put his own stamp on things now and has them playing the way he wants them to play. I wouldn’t pay too much attention to the games we had against them at the start of the season.

“They have kicked on since. They’re coming here on the back of two good results themselves having beaten Drogheda after a good point against Derry in the Brandywell. We’d be focusing on those performances rather than looking back to how they played against us two months ago.”

Bohs’ 3-2 EA Sports Cup win against St Pat’s on Tuesday provided a platform for some of the players on the fringes of Heary’s squad to stake a claim for regular inclusion with 18-year-old Jake Hyland making the most of the opportunity as he netted twice from midfield.

Heary said: “They were two great goals and both of them on his weaker foot. Aside from the goals, he held his own in there up against real quality in Greg Bolger and Killian Brennan. Starting two games in four days at this level would be a big ask at this stage but he’s definitely played himself into contention now.”

Dinny Corcoran grabbed the winner against St Pat’s, which served to highlight what a loss he will be as he begins a three-match ban tomorrow for the red card he received for an off-the-ball incident with Derry City’s Cliff Byrne last week.

“He probably owed us that goal,” Heary said. “It was such a silly sending-off last Friday and losing him for the next few weeks is frustrating for me and hopefully frustrating for him. It’s a learning curve. As a striker, defenders are going to annoy you and wind you up. You answer them back by scoring goals, not by getting involved off the ball.”

Corcoran isn’t the only absentee tomorrow. Aidan Price remains out with a quad injury, while Paddy Kavanagh is struggling with an ankle knock. Anto Murphy made his first appearance of the season as he was introduced from the bench on Tuesday after a lengthy lay-off with a hamstring injury, but he is not yet ready to start a game.

“It’s great to get Anto back into the squad,” added Heary. “But he only got 20 minutes or so against St Pat’s so he still has a way to go before we consider him ready to start a game. With Aidan also out, we’ve looked at other alternatives at the back. Dano Byrne and Eoin Wearen were solid together against St Pat’s and Jack Memery really grew into the game at left-back too, so we’ve decent options there now.”