
Stephen Kenny urges St Patrick's Athletic to bounce back after derby drubbing by Shamrock Rovers
STEPHEN KENNY has called on his St Pat's players not to allow their thumping by Shamrock Rovers to derail them.
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St Patrick's Athletic manager Stephen Kenny was furious with his team after the 4-0 defeat to their Dublin rivals
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St Patrick's Athletic manager Stephen Kenny says his side must maintain their unbeaten home form
It was also their fourth away defeat on the bounce with
Admitting his team were second best and did not deserve anything from their visit to Tallaght, Kenny shrugged: "It can happen.
'That's the first time it has happened. In other games, we lost a couple of goals in Dublin derbies in injury time. That's the first time there has been more than a goal in the game.
'At the end of last season we came here and won 3-0 and we were the team that had all the ball and had a lot more chances.
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'We were on the receiving end this time and it's not a nice feeling. We created our own problems. I's on all of us, myself included, so certainly we're disappointed.
'What we've got to do is we can't let that derail us, we've got to dust ourselves down and get ready for Friday.
'We've got two games before the break, against Waterford and Sligo so we've got to dust ourselves down and try to respond in a positive way.
'Our home form, I don't know how many are in the league, but we're 21 unbeaten since Dundalk last summer.
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'We've got to go again, try and rally around each other and try and get a big win on Friday.'
Their hopes of victory against the Blues will not be helped by the sidelining of another key player.
Remembering Gadi Kinda: A Football Star's Legacy and Untimely Passing
Kenny said: 'Midfield is an issue at the moment with Romal Palmer, who I had high hopes for, still out, along with Chris Forrester and Kian Leavy.
'And Jamie Lennon picked up his fifth booking. Midfield is an issue for us so we've got to make sure we get that right for Friday.'
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RTÉ News
2 days ago
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Homegrown Honohan eager to impress Hallgrimsson
Josh Honohan has certainly taken the path less travelled on his journey to receive a call-up to the Republic of Ireland senior squad. The vast majority of Ireland internationals have had to leave the country to pursue professional football, however, the Shamrock Rovers defender has always plied his trade on the island. Coming through the ranks at renowned Cork schoolboy side Carrigaline United, Honohan moved to the Cork City academy as a 16-year-old before making his breakthrough to the first team at the Turner's Cross club. An impressive season in 2023 attracted the attention of Rovers and Honohan signed for the Hoops ahead of their 2024 campaign, going on to quickly establish himself in Stephen Bradley's starting side and helping the club undertake a history-making European run, which ended in the knockout stages of the UEFA Conference League. 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"The coaching I've had since I was young has always been at a really high level, I've never been to the UK, but I've never looked at it like it was a negative. "You more just dream it [as a 16-year-old], and you just try to work as hard as you can, be disciplined and committed. "It sounds really cliché but you just take one game at a time and try to do as well as you can and hope you get the opportunity." The League of Ireland's mid-season break coincides with the June international window and while many players take the opportunity to enjoy some early summer sunshine ahead of the second half of the season, Honohan is more than happy to be camped out in west Dublin for the next week. "I was planning on going away to Malaga to get a bit of sun but I'm not complaining, I'm delighted to be here," said Honohan. "It's dream come true to firstly be here and then over the next two games, hopefully I make an appearance, that would be a dream of mine. I'm not complaining. I'm delighted to be here. "I do set small goals, but I don't set massive long-term goals. But now that I am here, the aim is to do well in training, and if I can make an appearance, do as well as I can." Honohan headed off on international duty off the back of a disappointing scoreless draw with Galway United last Friday night and was on the end of a scathing appraisal of his performance by Rovers manager Stephen Bradley. The defender addressed and accepted the manager's criticism, but denied that he was distracted by the Ireland management team in attendance at the game. "First, about the performance it was obviously disappointing," he said. "When you're involved with Shamrock Rovers, you want to get three points every game. Last Friday we didn't get three points. "About the manager's comments, look the manager has been here for a good couple of years now and a massive reason the club has been so successful is that the manager has set the standard in the club. 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"We just went over one or two things in training, showing clips of the way we play and little principles that we have, so it's just trying to learn them as quickly as I can and trying to build a connection with the lads," said the 24-year-old. "He wants us to be a good defensive team, a well-drilled team with a good shape, and you can see he is a top manager. "He has managed some top international teams, and he has done really well with them, so you can definitely see why he has been successful as an international manager."