“if the fans see the lads playing for the jersey, we can count on their support”
July 25, 2013
BOHEMIANS v DROGHEDA UNITED (Dalymount Park, Friday July 26th, 7.45pm)
Bohemians go in search of their first back-to-back wins of the season as they host Drogheda United on Friday.
Caretaker manager Owen Heary aims to channel the players’ pride at last week’s defeat of Bray to securing another win and putting his team within one point of this week’s opponents.
“We will have to start the game again at high intensity and keep that up. The players showed they could do that against Bray. We saw Karl Moore set the tone early on. He tackled back a few times as well as pressing the opposition high up the pitch.
“But from Dean [Delaney, in goal] right up through the team, all the players put in their shift,” said Heary.
The manager has drawn strength from the support the “brilliant” fans gave the team in Bray.
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“Expectations have gone up after that match and we have to be aware of that. But we also can’t go into our shells after one win. We have to go out and do it again and the fans will get behind us.”
Drogheda United have, like Bohemians, found it hard to get league wins over recent months. Their last victory came in mid-May, away to Limerick. But the Bohemian manager is not under-estimating them.
“They have had to deal with European commitments. They have done fantastically well last season and at the start of this season. And they don’t become a bad team overnight,” he said.
Heary is organising his campaign as caretaker manager on a match-by-match basis, not knowing how long he will be in position. “We are giving the players all the information they need about the next opponents, but I cannot set targets for groups of games, as I would like to.”
For Friday, he has to plan without suspended defenders Derek Pender and Luke Byrne. However, he has signed former Bohemian team-mate Anto Murphy and will bring him into action immediately in the centre of defence.
Utility player Murphy has been most recently with FAI Junior Cup-holders Sheriff YC, and had spells with St Patrick’s Athletic and Shelbourne since he was a trophy-winner with Bohemians. He has joined his old club days before his 31st birthday (1st August).
“He is technically good, he works hard, he’s good in the air and he has a lot of the attributes as well as the experience that we need in our side,” said Heary.
Ciaran Nangle is likely to return to the left side of defence. But Murphy’s arrival avoids having to move Dave Mulcahy back; he took a knock against Bray last week but should be fit to play his commanding role in midfield.
Midfielder Shane Murray (ankle injury) may not be available for Friday but a new option in midfield is recruit Stephen Doran (24), who has returned to his native Dublin after four years in the United States.
Doran has played with Martin Methodist College (Tennessee) and Rocket City United (Alabama) and has been training with the Bohemian squad for the past month and played in recent friendlies.
