Well, well, well. The Kingdom return to league action this weekend with an away double header against UCD and Athlone Town after what can only be described as a Mounthawk Miracle 7 short days ago.
Kerry’s cup campaign looked to be derailed at the quarter-final stage. An Owen Elding hat-trick had Premier Division Sligo Rovers in cruise control in Mounthawk Park. But a comeback that is still echoing through the Kerry mountains meant Kerry have a semi-final date to look forward to next month. The ground shook, the crowds roared, and the Kingdom well and through rose from the ground. Kerry had arrived!
And that win stretches an unbeaten run for the Kingdom to 5 games, not having tasted defeat since early August. Kerry are one of the league’s form teams and belief throughout the club that the final play-off place is still within reach.
But the students of UCD are in some formidable form themselves. They were beaten to a late goal in Limerick 2 weeks ago, but were without defeat since August 1st apart from that. They are, barring another miracle, secure of a playoff spot having 14 points in hand over 6th placed Finn Harps.
It was a cracking contest in UCD earlier this year, with Kerry scoring one penalty and saving two en route to a valuable away win. We are set for another thrilling contest in South Dublin tomorrow evening.
Matchday 31
UCD AFC v Kerry FC – Friday, September 19th – 7:45pm Kick Off – UCD Bowl
Previous Meetings – All Competitions
Kerry FC Wins 1 Draws 1 UCD AFC Wins 5
Did You Know?
Kerry secured their first win over UCD when the sides last met in the UCD Bowl. In a game that had it all, Sean McGrath scored the only goal of the game. But Kerry keeper Tim-Oliver Hiemer was the hero, saving not one but two penalty kicks to ensure Kerry left South Dublin with all 3 points.
Injury Update
There are no fresh injury headaches for Colin Healy ahead of the trip to the Capital tomorrow evening. Having played nearly 130 minutes last Friday, rotation is likely for the double game week. Hero on the last trip to UCD, Tim Oliver Hiemer remains sidelined with a broken finger, while Ryan Kelliher & Nathan Gleeson remain long-term absentees.
What they said?
Colin Healy – “We want to win every game. Look, UCD are in great form at the moment, they are a good side. The last time we played them, Niall was sent off early doors, so the game was very tough for us. Hopefully, we can go up there and put on a good performance. The games are running out now, so we need to get as many wins as possible to climb up the table.”