Athlone Town v Finn Harps – Athlone Town Stadium, Saturday 28 th April 2007 – kick-off 7.00pm

Preview by Joe Doherty

Finn Harps make their first ever visit to the new Athlone Town Stadium at Lissywollen on Saturday for a game that they must simply win if they are to have any chance of competing for promotion to next season's Premier Division.  Harps have made a disastrous start to the 2007 campaign, winning just one of their first seven games and Paul Hegarty's side currently find themselves sitting joint-bottom of the Division.  “I know where we are in the table and it's not good enough”, said Hegarty.  “The players know that it has been a terrible start and we have to get out of this.”

Since beating Shelbourne in the opening home game of the season, Harps have managed just two points from the subsequent five game and more worryingly have found the net just twice in those games.  “Maybe we need a bit of confidence and need one to go in off somebody's backside to give ourselves a wee boost.  It's up to us to work that little bit harder and try and turn it around”, said that Harps boss.

Harps go into the game with a doubt over the fitness of Jonathan Minnock who has an Achilles problem.  Michael Funston, who has missed the last three games, is close to a return to full fitness but may have to wait another week.  With James Gallagher making the costly mistake that led to the only goal of the game in the 0-1 defeat in Kildare last weekend, Hegarty may decide to change his keeper for the sixth game in a row.  Whether or not the Harps Manager makes change to the rest of his team remains to be seen.

Hegarty feels the overall performance of the team hasn't been that bad thus far with other teams conducting a smash and grab on his side.  “I think that last week's performance against Kildare County was our best performance of the season aside from the game against Dundalk.  I think we cut them open very well and I think our back four were superb again.  Every week seems to have been the same for us so far.  We are getting hit with real sucker punches.  You could take it if the team wasn't playing well or if we weren't the better team, but we're dominating games and we just can't seem to take our chances.”

Athlone beat Monaghan United 2-0 in Kingspan Century Park last weekend which ended a run of three consecutive defeats which included a 6-2 hammering in Oriel Park against Dundalk.  Athlone have lost just once in their new stadium, that coming in their last home game against Kildare County where they went down 2-0.

After the trip to Athlone, Harps host a trio of games at Finn Park in the space of seven days with a league Cup game against Sligo Rovers (7 th May) sandwiched between the visits of Kilkenny City (4 th May) and Dundalk (11 th May) in the First Division.  A win on Saturday night in Athlone won't lift Hegarty's team too far up the First Division table, but it might just kick-start his team's season.

These two sides met each other six times last season, four times in the league and twice in the FAI Cup, with Anthony Gorman's Harps only managing to beat the Westmeath side once in those six meetings – that victory coming in a 2-0 Finn Park victory last July.  Harps lost out by a single goal margin in each of their three visits to St. Mel's Park last season.

Previous Meetings (2006 season):

17 th April 2006 – First Division – Finn Harps 1 Athlone Town 1

12 th May 2006 – First Division – Athlone Town 1 Finn Harps 0

22 nd July 2006 – First Division – Finn Harps 2 Athlone Town 0

26 th August 2006 – FAI Cup – Finn Harps 0 Athlone Town 0

29 th August 2006 – FAI Cup – Athlone Town 3 Finn Harps 2

22 nd September 2006 – First Division – Athlone Town 2 Finn Harps 1

Form guide this season:

Finn Harps: L-L-D-D-L-W-L (5pts).  Athlone Town: W-L-L-L-W-D-W (10pts).

Directions for Harps fans making their first trip to the new Athlone Town Stadium:

Approaching Athlone on the Roscommon Road (N61), join the Dual Carriageway at Ganly Roundabout, bound for Dublin.  Leave Dual Carriageway two exits later (No.4).  Turn right on leaving Dual Carriageway.  Take first exit off Athlone RSC Roundabout (100 yards).  Continue on this road until you see Athlone Town Stadium on your right.

Saturday's game kick-offs at 7.00pm.