Duff excited for FAI Cup clash with Derry | OneFootball

A place in the final four of the FAI Cup is the prize on offer tomorrow night as Shelbourne make the trip to the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium to face Derry City. (Kick-off 5:45 pm // RTÉ2).

The Reds arrive at the quarter-final stage after two tough opening round wins, first a 1-0 victory over Bray Wanderers, then a penalty shootout success against Galway United.

After training at the AUL on Friday, Shels boss Damien Duff delivered a positive injury update to ShelbourneFC.ie:

“Dean Williams is back in the squad, which is good news. Sean Boyd got game time last week,  Boydy has a strong presence and personality, even when coming onto the pitch; he makes the back four take a step back. We’re just working on building him back up to full speed for a start. JJ Lunney missed last week with a calf injury, he will undergo a late fitness test before making a decision, aside from that everyone else is fit”

The last five games between the teams have ended in draws, its the first time meeting in the FAI Cup since the final of 2022, which the Candystripes won 4-0. Duff feels that result won’t matter much come tomorrow:

“The cup final is dead — some players might use it for fuel, but we need to look forward, not back. We’re a completely different team and squad now, a different club, a totally different animal from what they faced in that cup final.”

“I don’t see it being an open game, but I could be wrong, I have been plenty of times before. It should be a tight match because both teams are very strong. Some of the fans may view it with dread, a trip to Derry in the quarter-final, but not at all, we’re very excited.

“It tees things up nicely for the last game of the season. I know it’s a cliche. There are many ways to reach a cup final, but you have to win tough matches, whether at home or away.”

The Reds head into this one looking to deliver an improved performance on a week ago at Dalymount, Duff though knows that picking up points when you’re not at your best is vitally important:

“It was a brilliant point that we earned, despite offering next to nothing on the ball. The team knows they need to deliver more quality, they know they have it. Considering we didn’t bring that to the game last week, it’s a great point against a very strong team. The position in the league, not real, look at Tierney and Devoy, and the way they play, they won’t transform overnight but there is a brilliant squad there and it’s a great point for us.”

The Reds retook top spot in the League of Ireland after a 1-0 win in Dundalk. Duff feels those who doubt Derry City’s resolve are unwise:

“Derry City has a better manager, better staff, a better squad, better team, better stadium, and better budget. You ask anyone at Derry, they would agree with me; it would be madness to write them off. But we’re not focused on that, what people say about them, what they say about us. What can we do about it? We can continue to be the hardest-working team in the league. The most tight knit group and we see where that can take us. We know Derry are certainly the favourites for both the league and the cup — that’s just a fact.

Over the course of the season, Duff’s Reds have been labelled organised, streetwise, and masters of the dark arts by the opposition. The Shels boss is untroubled by what is said outside of Tolka Park:

“We can’t control the outside noise or what other teams or fans say about us. First, we were labelled as organised, which I think was strangely seen as a slight — fine. Now it’s about being masters of the ‘dark arts,’ or being ‘streetwise,’ and talk of unjust red cards. I find these comments even more strange as I often criticise our players for being too nice!”

“Derry is too good a team to try and manipulate a referee the day before a game. Rob Harvey is one of the best referees in the league, if not the best, and I don’t think talking about cards will influence him. He’ll be focused on his job, and we’re focused on ours. There’s a lot of noise, but we have to ignore it and get the job done.”