The Kingdom head for the Midlands tomorrow (Saturday) for matchday 30 of the 2026 SSE Airtricity Men’s First Division campaign as the race for the playoff places enters its final leg with 6 games of the season to go.
Kerry currently sit two points adrift of the playoff spots, with tomorrow night’s opponents as well as near neighbours Cobh Ramblers sitting on 41 points, as opposed to Kerry’s 39. Kerry will visit Cobh on the penultimate night of the season in a few weeks, so there is so much still to play for as the campaign nears its conclusion.
Kerry will make the trip to a ground where they have struggled in the past, taking a single point home to the Kingdom in the 2024 season. But Kerry will be buoyed by recent away performances, which saw Kerry win away to 2nd and 3rd-placed UCD and Bray Wanderers, respectively.
There is an air of a 6 pointer about this one; Longford could potentially make it a 5 point gap from safety, while a win for the Kingdom could relegate Longford to 6th place in the league. A draw would keep this race as tight as it is going into the game, while Cobh host 2nd-placed UCD tonight (Friday)
Longford Town are having a fantastic season in their own right and have suffered just 2 league defeats since their 2-1 loss in Mounthawk Park at the end of June. They came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 away to Cobh last week and put 4 past Bray Wanderers in their last outing at home in Bishopsgate.
While Kerry’s unbeaten run at home stretches back to early April, away results against Longford, Athlone, Finn Harps and Cobh Ramblers will be crucial come the final points tally that could see the Kingdom finish in the playoff places for the first time in the club’s history.
There will be a good Kerry contingent making the 600km round journey to Longford tomorrow, who will be hoping a positive result will shorten the journey back to the Kingdom.
Head-to-head
Kerry FC Wins – 5 Draws – 3 Longford Wins – 7
Did You Know?
Despite the distance between the sides, two players have donned the Kerry and Longford colours. Harry Halwax made the switch from the Midlanders to the Kingdom during the winter, while former Kerry FC captain Andy Spain made the move to Longford following a successful spell in the Kingdom in 2024.
Injury Update
It’s business as you were for Colin Healy ahead of the trip to the Midlands. Simon Lüchinger did suffer a small groin injury while training last week; he’s being assessed. Daniel Okwute has returned to training, but it’s unknown whether or not he makes the trip to Bishopsgate. Finn Barrett, Luke Doolan and Luke Palmer remain absent while Ryan Kelliher won’t return until the 2027 campaign.
‘What they said’
Colin Healy – “Look, we just focus on ourselves. They’ve got a great home record, so it’s going to be a tough, tough game. But what I will say is our boys are looking forward to it; they’re in a good place after getting some really good results, and confidence is high. We need to bring that now to Longford on Saturday. Their manager deserves huge credit for where they are on the table and the players he has brought in. They have some great players and are coached very well. They can score goals, and defensively they are strong. So we are well aware of the challenge, but as I said, we go up there with every confidence that we can get a win.”