Sligo Rovers will be expected to keep the pressure on the top three of the League of Ireland Premier when they welcome bottom-of-the-table University College Dublin to The Showgrounds on Sunday.
The hosts come into this fixture on the back of success in Europe over the past couple of weeks, whilst the visitors continue to extend their winless run further as they edge closer towards relegation out of the top flight.
Match preview
Sunday's hosts return to domestic action for the first time in over two weeks on Sunday, since defeating Shelbourne 3-1 on July 2.
Sligo have had their attentions fixed on their two-legged Europa Conference League tie with Bala Town instead, which they scraped through following a scare on Thursday evening.
A 2-1 victory in Wales last week had set the Irish side up nicely for their return home in midweek, but after losing the second leg 1-0 in front of their own supporters, extra time was forced.
Neither side could find a winner during the additional 30 minutes, but Sligo came out triumphant by a 4-3 scoreline in the penalty shootout to set up a tie with Scottish outfit Motherwell in the second round of qualifying next week.
Focus must temporarily switch back to domestic action for the time being however, and a five-game unbeaten run in the League of Ireland leaves Rovers in fifth place at the time of writing.
Eight points separate John Russell's side from Derry City in third place, so with 14 games left to play, their hopes of qualifying for another European campaign are far from over just yet, but the boss is fully aware of his side's need to close that gap over the coming weeks, starting with Sunday's hosting of struggling UCD.
The visitors could not have endured a much worse season up to this point, with UCD having won just one of their opening 22 games so far.
A 3-1 defeat at home to Bohemians last Thursday condemned the last-placed outfit to a fourth consecutive defeat, and sixth from their last seven outings.
A remarkable 16-point gap between themselves and Drogheda United in eighth place has been opened up as a result, meaning a fight for the relegation playoff spot is the best that they can hope for in the remaining few months of the 2022 campaign.
Just three points separate UCD from Finn Harps in that spot as things stand, who have endured just as poor a season as Sunday's visitors to The Showgrounds, but recording a win to catch their relegation rivals is certainly much easier said than done for Andrew Myler's side.
Considering UCD have also lost seven times and drawn twice in their last nine meetings with Sligo over the last eight years, it looks to be a monumental task for them to avoid a fifth consecutive defeat at the weekend.
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Team News
Sligo welcomed back Garry Buckley from a one-month absence at the heart of the defence in midweek, but with games coming thick and fast, the central defender may be rotated on Sunday.
Nando Pijnaker may well earn his starting place back after sitting out in midweek through suspension, whilst Greg Bolger will be hoping to return to the squad after missing out again on Thursday due to a slight knock, despite being expected to return.
Aidan Keena will form part of the front three on Sunday, with the forward's 11 goals making him Sligo's top goalscorer this season by some distance.
As for the visitors, Sam Todd will be unavailable following the central defender's red card last time out against Bohemians.
Striker Colm Whelan remains on the sidelines for some time, after the in-demand youngster ruptured his cruciate ligament back in May.
The club's top goalscorer had netted four goals during the 2022 campaign, and with the rest of the squad having just nine between them, Myler will be looking for his squad to collectively step up in the final third.
Sligo Rovers possible starting lineup:
McGinty; Horgan, Pijnaker, Blaney, Kirk; Morahan, McDonnell, Bolger; Keena, Mata, Fitzgerald
University College Dublin possible starting lineup:
Moore; Ryan, Keaney, Boore, Osam; Kerrigan, Verdon, Higgins, Duffy; Caffrey, Lonergan
We say: Sligo Rovers 3-0 University College Dublin
This should be a comfortable routine victory for Sligo on Sunday, despite the hosts having played 120 minutes of intense football on Thursday evening.
UCD do not look too capable of putting up a fight against the drop as things stand, so Sligo should manage to keep the pressure on the top three with a comprehensive win.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Matthew Tranter
