Busy weekend of action in the Limerick District League

The PJ Matthews Premier Division is back in full flow this weekend following FAI Junior Cup action last weekend. There are five games down for decision on Sunday and each game will kick off at 11am besides the meeting of Janesboro and Carew Park which kicks off at 2pm at Pearse Stadium. There is also Munster Junior Cup action as Charleville entertain Pike Rovers on Saturday evening at 7pm.

The aforementioned southside derby is the pick of the fixtures for the weekend with the top two of Janesboro and Carew Park in action. Albert Slattery’s Carew Park have went about their business quietly in recent weeks and now find themselves just six points behind their hosts heading into the game. The return of Slattery this season has certainly resulted in an upturn in form for Carew who will be hoping to pounce on any doubt in the ‘Boro camp following last weeks FAI Junior Cup exit at the hands of North End United.

Regional United entertain Kilmallock in Dooradoyle with a view to regaining second spot in the table. Due to FAI Junior Cup exploits last weekend, Ray Lynch’s side lost second place without playing in the league. However, they still remain just seven points behind the leaders. On the astroturf at home, Regional are a formidable side and Kilmallock will have to put in a similar performance to the impressive win over Ballynanty Rovers to have any chance of victory. Regional have started well in seasons gone by but have fallen off the radar as the season continued. It seems as though any consistency issues may have been eradicated by Lynch this season.

Ballynanty host Fairview Rangers at their temporary home at the Markets Field with both sides badly needing a win for different reasons. Tom Daly’s Ballynanty side need to keep pace with Carew Park and Janesboro and with both sides facing eachother this weekend, it is an opportunity for the northsiders to build on last weekend’s 0-3 win away at Holycross and close the gap on at least one of those clubs. On the other hand, Jason Purcell’s Fairview side have been struggling all season. The club had a slow start as recruitment did not go to plan as well as the presence of managerial change. FAI Junior Cup winning manager Purcell returned to the club and will be looking to add to last week’s win over Charleville to pull themselves well clear of the bottom three. The return of Conor Kavanagh has boosted the side and Paul Danaher also returns from suspension this week.

Aisling Annacotty play Moyross at the astroturf in Annacotty. If results go their way, Mike McCarthy’s side could jump to fifth in the league table. The club have had a mixed season so far with five victories and six defeats and only one draw. Following on from last season’s Touhy Cup win, a top half finish would certainly be a good achievement this season. Moyross can extend their lead over Charleville to six points as their rivals are not in league action. On a wide pitch, Moyross will have to close space and press quickly in order to stifle Aisling and grab a valuable result.

Basement club Holycross play host to Nenagh with the hope of picking up their first victory of the campaign. There are 17 points currently separating the clubs. Nenagh have not enjoyed a similar season to last year where the Tipperary outfit pushed Janesboro all the way until the final game for the league title. They find themselves in sixth place. If Holycross are to have any slim chance of remaining in the premier division, you feel they must target three points in home games such as this against midtable opposition.

In other news, the Limerick District League Oscar Traynor side have been drawn against Clare should they overcome Cork in the next round of the competition. The date of the Cork fixture has yet to be confirmed.