Waterford FC Jamu St Patricks Athletic di Regional Sports Centre

Waterford FC akan menjamu St Patrick’s Athletic FC dalam lanjutan kompetisi SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division di Regional Sports Centre (RSC) pada Jumat, 10 Juli 2026 malam waktu setempat.

Pertandingan ini menjadi laga kandang pertama bagi skuad The Blues dalam tiga pekan terakhir setelah sebelumnya mengemas kemenangan beruntun dalam dua laga tandang melawan Dundalk dan Derry City.

Tambahan enam poin dari laga tandang tersebut berhasil mengangkat posisi Waterford FC dari dasar klasemen sementara berkat keunggulan selisih gol, dengan mengoleksi sepuluh poin dari lima pertandingan terakhir mereka.

Di sisi lain, St Patrick’s Athletic asuhan Stephen Kenny datang ke RSC membawa modal positif setelah mengalahkan Galway United 3-0 di Richmond Park pekan lalu, serta memiliki catatan impresif selalu menang dalam tiga kunjungan terakhir mereka ke markas Waterford.

Saat ini Saints berada di posisi ketiga klasemen sementara dengan raihan 41 poin dari 23 pertandingan yang sudah dijalani sepanjang musim 2026.

Manajer Waterford FC, Graham Coughlan, mengonfirmasi tidak ada masalah cedera baru dalam skuadnya menjelang laga ini, meski Evan McLaughlin dan Finlay Armstrong dipastikan masih absen akibat cedera.

Selain itu, Waterford juga telah melepas beberapa pemain di bursa transfer, termasuk Ronan Mansfield ke Cobh Ramblers, Zak O’Sullivan ke Wexford, dan Conor Carty yang hengkang ke FC Halifax Town.

Peningkatan performa tim di bawah arahan Graham Coughlan juga terbantu oleh ketajaman striker Tommy Lonergan yang saat ini memimpin daftar pencetak gol terbanyak klub.

“Last Friday was very pleasing. We debriefed it Monday morning and there were a lot of positives to come out of it. The players are in a good place after it.

There is of course a few little pieces we need to fix & correct, but since I’ve come in here I’ve seen a lot of growth and development within the dressing room, and I know there’s still a lot more to come from them, but in general the last couple of weeks have been really pleasing in terms of performance levels & attitude from the players. Tomorrow is a huge challenge. St.

Pats are one of the best teams in the country with a good manager & top players who are also a well supported club. They’re hungry this season, looking to push and challenge for the title this season. Every game & every week is a challenge for us, but at this moment in time our dressing room is looking forward to the next game.

The big tests keep coming, but we’re looking forward to it, and hopefully we can maintain this form that we’re on at the moment, but it won’t be easy. The fans have been brilliant since I’ve come in through the door. You hear them every single Friday night, even from the moment the players step out for the warm ups.

I said the night we played Drogheda at the RSC the rain that fell that night but they still turned out in their numbers. The players are coming off the pitch after the warm up and the fans are already lifting them into the changing room. I spoke to the players before a game recently and I said to them before they went out to listen to the noise that’s being generated in the stand for you, and it worked.

The fans have been brilliant. If we can get a few more people in, a few more bums on seats & voices heard, hopefully we’ll be able to have a strong end of season finish at the club. They’ve been so important to us so far.” ujar Graham Coughlan, Manajer Waterford FC sebagaimana dilansir situs resmi klub.

Dalam wawancara terpisah yang dilaporkan oleh RTE, Coughlan kembali memberikan penegasan mengenai kondisi anak asuhnya setelah meraih kemenangan krusial di markas Derry City.

“The players are in a good place after Derry. There is of course a few little pieces we need to fix and correct, but since I’ve come in here I’ve seen a lot of growth and development within the dressing room, and I know there’s still a lot more to come from them. But in general the last couple of weeks have been really pleasing in terms of performance levels and attitude from the players.

St Pat's are one of the best teams in the country with a good manager and top players. They’re hungry this season, looking to push and challenge for the title. The big tests keep coming, but we’re looking forward to it, and hopefully we can maintain this form that we’re on at the moment, but it won’t be easy.” kata Graham Coughlan, Manajer Waterford FC kepada RTE.

Sementara itu, media WLRFM melaporkan bahwa Coughlan sejak awal percaya timnya memiliki kemampuan untuk bangkit dan merangkak naik meninggalkan papan bawah klasemen.

“I didn’t think they were a bottom-of-the-table team,” kata Graham Coughlan, Manajer Waterford FC kepada WLRFM.

Coughlan menambahkan bahwa kembalinya rasa percaya diri serta penyederhanaan taktik menjadi kunci utama kebangkitan performa permainan anak asuhnya di lapangan.

“The confidence seems to be restored, and the self-belief has returned,” ucap Graham Coughlan, Manajer Waterford FC.

Meski tren positif sedang menaungi skuadnya, Coughlan meminta para pemain untuk tidak memikirkan hal lain di luar pertandingan krusial pada Jumat malam tersebut.

“We still have a job to do. The next game is massive, and that’s our only focus. We deal with one game at a time, and we’ll see where that takes us at the end of the season,” tutur Graham Coughlan, Manajer Waterford FC.

Coughlan juga menyampaikan apresiasi mendalam atas sambutan hangat dan dukungan tanpa henti yang diberikan oleh komunitas serta suporter lokal sejak ia tiba di wilayah tenggara Irlandia tersebut.

“The fans have been brilliant. They’ve brought so much energy and have really got behind the team. Everywhere I’ve gone around Waterford, people have been welcoming and supportive,” sebut Graham Coughlan, Manajer Waterford FC.

Dukungan dan atmosfer positif di dalam internal tim juga dibenarkan oleh Tommy Lonergan yang menegaskan semua pemain kini memahami peran masing-masing dengan sangat baik.

“I feel like every player knows their role now. The energy around the club has been brilliant, and we’re really enjoying our football,” kata Tommy Lonergan, Penyerang Waterford FC kepada WLRFM.

Lonergan juga membantah rumor transfer mengenai dirinya dan menegaskan komitmen penuh untuk tetap bertahan serta melanjutkan performa terbaiknya bersama klub.

“They’re a top side, but I think we’ve got a great chance. We’ll give it everything and see where it takes us,” ujar Tommy Lonergan, Penyerang Waterford FC mengenai kekuatan tim lawan.

Di tempat lain, pekan ini kompetisi Premier Division hanya memainkan sedikit pertandingan karena Shamrock Rovers, Bohemians, Shelbourne, dan Derry City mendapatkan jadwal libur untuk mendukung persiapan mereka di kompetisi Eropa.

Kondisi tersebut dimanfaatkan oleh tim lain termasuk rival sewilayah, Dundalk FC yang bersiap melakoni laga bertajuk Louth Derby melawan Drogheda United.

Manajer Dundalk FC, Ciaran Kilduff, menegaskan arti penting pertandingan derby tersebut demi mengamankan posisi empat besar klasemen, meski skuadnya harus kehilangan Danny Mullen, Conor Kearns, Conor O’Keefe, dan Norman Garbett akibat cedera.

“I think we all know how big this game is. We know what's at stake; we need the points, so we’ll have to make sure we do everything right. The group so far has done the club and the town proud, and we hope to continue that.

There are a lot of positives around the place at the minute, and we just have to keep focusing on them. We need to take every advantage we can get. Having all our supporters in place gives us a bit of a competitive advantage at home.

But it matters nothing on the pitch. We know what’s at stake and we’ll have to make sure we do everything right. We’ll have everyone ready this week, we’ll get a good week of training in, and hopefully it leads to a big night for the club.” kata Ciaran Kilduff, Manajer Dundalk FC sebagaimana dilansir RTE.

Di kubu lawan, Drogheda United datang dengan rekor buruk tanpa kemenangan dalam delapan laga terakhir serta kehilangan Owen Lambe, Warren Davis, Kieran Cruise, dan Andrew Quinn karena cedera.

Rangkaian pertandingan akhir pekan ini akan ditutup oleh pertandingan Connacht Derby yang mempertemukan Galway United melawan Sligo Rovers di Pearse Stadium pada Sabtu malam.