Every time I write about Derry City now it seems to begin with me saying "Another disappointing night at the Brandywell for Stephen Kenny".
Well, Friday night's game against Dundalk was no exception, and after another home defeat it is looking increasingly like Derry City's title challenge for this season is slipping away.
For the third time in a row, Derry have played the second-fro
m-bottom team at the Brandywell and failed to win. It really isn't a great statistic, and when you see the gap widening at the top in terms of Bohs and Cork, who have put an impressive run together, it just makes things even worse.
It is a tough time for Stephen Kenny. Probably for the first time during his time at Derry he is coming under a bit of pressure from the fans, and I would assume the board of directors as well. His job is hardly under threat, but with Derry City a full-time club, and a lot of money being spent, it is the first time that people question why it is going wrong at the moment.
It gives me no pleasure in saying it but the performance against Dundalk was pretty mediocre, and you could sense that there is a bit of fear starting to spread through the players which was never there under Kenny before.
Derry had a few chances in the first half to wrap the match up, especially Mark Farren and Sammy Morrow, and when those chances didn't go in Derry never looked like breaking down Dundalk in the second half.
That is the first set of games gone now, and after a promising start to the campaign they have hit a stumbling block. With another tricky encounter away to Drogheda next week, it will be interesting to see how the players bounce back.
The most disappointing thing for me is that if Derry had capitalised on their good start I would have fancied them to go the whole way and lift the title, because I feel that the League isn't as strong as it has been in recent years. But unfortunately they haven't.
I know it is still too early to be writing their chances off but they really have given themselves a mountain to climb to get back into it.
Start as ...
Talking about Roy Keane - in the five months he was away, you would have thought that he would have calmed down just a bit. No chance!
Keano wasn't five minutes in the Ipswich Town hotseat when he started to have a go at some of his former Man United teammates who won the double in 1994. On his radar was Steve Bruce, Mark Hughes, Paul Ince and Bryan Robson. He said they weren't a success because none of them won a trophy while managing their respective clubs, and they shouldn't be classed as so.
When you consider that since 1994 only three other clubs have won the Premiership, and only two clubs outside the top four have won the FA Cup, then they guys Keane has had a go at are in very good company.
Goals, goals - but trophies?
In the last month Liverpool have scored four goals against Manchester United, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Arsenal, but it still looks like they will end the season trophyless.
