Dundalk took the opportunity in Athlone to extend their lead at the top of Division 1 to 5 points, with Shels beating Waterford on Friday night to take second place in the table.

A 3 goal victory was just reward for another tough, battling performance. The first and third coming from OTC MOTM David Cassidy, with Jamie Duffy scoring the middle goal. Great performances all around, with some real fighting spirit shown in some very difficult circumstances.

Anthony Buttimer's campaign against improper dress in the game continued, when he forced John Flanagan to leave the pitch and remove his (bandaged) wedding ring. He put Flano off the pitch on the side opposite where the dugouts were located, meaning that John had to trust one of the fans with his ring. This was done quickly, as there was more trust between player and fans than Mr Buttimer could have foreseen, but then the player had to wait on the sideline for permission to come back on until the fans outrage reached a high enough volume to alert the referee to his oversight. The whole situation was made more ironic by the realisation that the ref was wearing his own wedding ring, unbandaged, throughout!

The performances from the officials deteriorated throughout the game, with Cassidy taking a blow to the head which was completely ignored as play went to the other end of the pitch as the player remained on the ground. When the ball went out of play at the other end of the pitch the ref called to David - from the other end of the pitch to check whether he was ok. Cassidy took many knocks, including a boot to his head, almost all of which came from the opposite number 8 and almost all of which went unpunished by the officials! The number 8 was also responsible for a kick to Aidan Lynch as Aidan was on the ground after being fouled. This action was also ignored.

Referees of Buttimer's stature (no pun intended) are ruining the game, allowing thugs to dictate and allowing dangerous play to go unpunished while getting their noses out of joint about completely unimportant issues. Buttimer has, on four or five occasions, almost prevented games from going ahead because the teams were wearing the wrong (in his view) colours! Officials are there to ensure that the game runs smoothly and to protect players. In this country, officials tend to forget their purpose and instead give performances that make a mockery of the game.

Despite the best efforts of the men in lime green, the lilywhites worked hard, never gave up and showed great determination to earn another three points. This result means that we will finish the first series of games at the top of the table, and a good result against Kildare on Thursday could leave us as the only unbeaten team in the country... sorry Cork, but can somebody tell Aertel?!

Youths FAI Cup Semi Final - St Patrick's Athletic 1 Dundalk 2

The Dundalk Youths team today reached the Youths FAI Cup Final, with a semi final defeat of St Pats at Inchicore. The home side took the lead through a goal from Andy Haron after 27 mins. Stephen Hutchinson used a corner to supply the cross for Gerard Connolly to score the lilywhite's equaliser 17 mins into the second half. Sean Conlon took the lead for Dundalk in the 89th minute, with a well deserved goal for his gutsy performance throughout the game. Both 'keepers made significant saves throughout the game, indicating the level of chances created by both teams. The Dundalk Youths deserve a huge well done for this victory, they worked hard and earned their place in the final.

This was a battle not relished by Waterford management or players, with pitiful excuses about the pitch. The home team came out on top, eventually, with a spectacular finish from Dundalk MOTM David Cassidy (again!). The lilywhite fans really got behind the team tonight, with a high volume of support throughout the game. Hopefully this can be maintained for the rest of the season, as that is a valid advantage - unlike our pitch!

Dundalk 2 Wexford 1, eL Series 4

Dundalk's opposition this week proved tougher than expected by a lot of lilywhites. Wexford Youths are growing up, and it shows. This is a good team, going places and getting there in the right way. They provided tough opposition and kept the home team on their toes throughout the game. The whites looked solid, however, and fully deserved the 3 points - perhaps deserving to win it by more than a single goal, but you have to take your chances!

Neil Doyle took the whistle (and, some might say, the biscuit!) again tonight in a performance summarised in his reaction to a tangle between Vaughan and Wexford's Garett Larkin. He awarded Vaughan a free, which was followed by Larkin digging Vaughan in the chest with his shoulder. The two "boys" then proceeded to chat as they walked away, no grudges held, and were actually laughing together by the time Doyle blew his whistle to call them back and give them a talking to! Barmy, that the pedantic official felt the need to eliminate bad feeling that evidently didn't exist!

Dundalk 3 Monaghan 0, eircom LOI Cup

Dundalk put three past repeat visitors Monaghan in a replay of the league game just 12 days earlier. A foggy night didn't do much to disguise that the "second string" was not noticeably different in performance or in terms of team relations. Crowley scored the first with Tiernan Mulvenna putting away two more to add insult to Monaghan's injury. T's second has to be a contender for goal of the season, a great lob of the unfortunate 'keeper!

Thursday sees the first visit this season of last season's addition to the eircom League - Mick Wallace's youths of Wexford. It is to be hoped that this match will be of a standard to at least equal the same fixture last season. The home side will also be looking to consolidate position at the top of the table with another league win. A suspension will see Shane Grimes sit this one out.