Drogheda United face Shelbourne at Sullivan and Lambe Park on Friday evening in their second home game of the season under Kevin Doherty.
The Boynesiders go into the fixture following a 1-1 draw away to Dundalk in the Louth Derby at Oriel Park last week.
The sides were level at the break, with Thomas Oluwa and Gbemi Arubi both going close to opening the scoring in the first half.
Dundalk took the lead just before the hour mark when Danny Mullen flicked a strike from the edge of the box beyond Luke Dennison.
Kevin Doherty responded by making five changes and altering his formation as Drogheda pushed for an equaliser. Their persistence paid off in the 89th minute.
Conor Keeley broke forward from defence and found Kieran Cruise, who delivered a cross into the box. Keeley continued his run and rose highest to beat Kearns and secure a point for Drogheda.
The sides met four times in the league last season, with Drogheda winning twice, 1-0 and 2-1, while the other two games ended in draws. Shelbourne did claim the President’s Cup when the teams met in February.
There are no suspensions ahead of Friday’s game. Warren Davis remains a doubt through injury, while Owen Lambe remains sidelined with a long term ACL injury.
Referee: Robert Harvey
Assistants: Wayne McDonnell, Eoin Harte
Fourth Official: Daniel Murphy
Pre-Match Quotes – Kevin Doherty
We know it’s going to be a tough game. Shelbourne have recruited really well in the off season, and have done really well the last few years in Europe and domestically, so we know it’s going to be tough, but we are looking forward to it.
“We are delighted with our start, 7 points after three games, and we have shown different sides to our performances. There are things we want to improve on, but it’s early days yet.
2026 Squad – Top Five All Time Competitive Appearances In All Competitions
Ryan Brennan – 251 apps (31 goals)
Conor Kane – 234 apps (2 goals)
Mark Doyle – 149 apps (51 goals)
Andrew Quinn – 112 apps (6 goals)
Warren Davis – 99 apps (12 goals)
Last Five Results
League: Dundalk 1-1 Drogheda United (Conor Keeley)
League: Drogheda United 2-0 Waterford (Shane Farrell, Mark Doyle)
League: Galway United 0-1 Drogheda United (Jago Godden)
Malone Cup: Drogheda United 1-1 Dundalk (2-4 pens) (Leo Burney goalscorer)
Friendly: Bray Wanderers 1-3 Drogheda United (Brandon Kavanagh, Ethan O’Brien, Edwin Agbaje)
2026 Goalscorers (Total / League / LSC)
Shane Farrell (2 / 1 / 1)
Mark Doyle (1 / 1 / 0)
Jago Godden (1 / 1 / 0)
Conor Keeley (1 / 1 / 0)
Kieran Cruise (1 / 0 / 1)
Ryan Brennan (1 / 0 / 1)
Brandon Kavanagh (1 / 0 / 1)
Jason Bucknor (1 / 0 / 1)
