the Setanta Cup kicked off tonight with Drogheda playing Cliftonville.the Drogs won 3-2.two goals from Eamo Zayed and Richie Baker.they played very well for a there first competitive game of season.Cliftonville made there debut in the competition and were solid looking to.will improve.Also Cork Beat Dungannon 2-0 goals from George O'Callaghan.he is back

Good result for both EL teams, I dont have Setanta so couldnt watch either but its good to see O'Callaghan back scoring at Cork & a great result for Drogheda with all the players theyre missing.

Its going to be an interesting competition this year but I can see it being between Drogheda, St Pats & Linfield

Drogheda and Derry final i think.pats in my opinion wont come out of there group.especially stephen kenny is back.cant wait for next weeks game between linfield and derry.

Yeah it should be a great game. Im not convinced with Derry though, obviously Id love to see them lose but they havent strengthened all that much in pre season. They weren't far off relegation last season so I think it'll take a while before they'll be back as a top team

maybe its because stephen kenny wasnt there.if he does bring them back to the top,it will prove how good he is.he has never won the setanta cup.could be a good bet

He had a disaster at Dunfermline, admittedly with a poor squad but still, I expected him to do better. It was more than likely Higgsy who was pulling the strings last time he was at Derry

I fancy Derry to do well. Their team hasn't changed that much since Kenny was here last and think he just knows how to get the best out of players. Was chatting to a few big City fans and they are really confident this year just because Kenny is back. Don't know what players he brought in but he did sign a mate of mine. Plays for N.Ireland at U-21 at LB but think he can play a few positions

I know Kenny brought a few players from Dunfermline, havent really heard of any big signings though. Its hard to tell what they'll be like this year, ill make up my mind on them after a few games

Don't know any of the other results but Derry lost 3-1 away to Linfield last night

st pats drew 3-3 with glentoran.two late goals for pats got them the point

I saw the highlights of the Derry game, their defence was terrible which in encouraging for next weekend. You cant read too much into it though, Linfield have been playing all season while Derry have only kicked off so theres going to be an obvious difference in fitness & sharpness

7 Apr 2008 Glentoran v Linfield
7 Apr 2008 Derry City v St Patrick's Athletic

2 good games on tonight. Derry against Pats again and think Derry will win relativley easily, 2-0. Not up to speed in the Irish League football but fancy a draw between Linfield & the Glens

come on derry

Glentoran 1-3 Linfield
Derry City 2-0 St Patrick's Athletic

How the frigg do Derry keep winning?! Still havent lost a game all season..

the answer is stephen kenny.the man is made from resillance

I think they have a good squad. You said in the other thread (Matchday 5) that their squad isn't that good but I think they have a fairly decent squad. Last night they rested players like McHugh, Hutton & Farren and had Sammon, Morrison & Callaghan coming in. All capable of starts anywhere in the league

They have a decent enough squad yeah, dont think its near the top teams but its definitely better than last season suggested. If theyre still up there this time next month then they might put in a decent challenge. I still think the 'Kenny Factor' is playing its past in the form. The clubs on a high since he came back but a few defeats and they'll be back at their right level

They have a better side now than that side that lost the league narrowly 2 years ago and had a great run in Europe aswell as a cup double. They havn't really lost any 'key' performers and have brought in players that are capable. I don't beleive the results can be put down to the the 'Kenny factor'. He is a manager at the end of the day and it's down to the players putting in performances.

On an off note, who would you's say is the best player in the league? Not the most knowledgable of the entire league but ever time I've seen Paddy McCourt he has been super

Yeah McCourt on his day is a great player, easily the best in the league on his day. He has a similar style to how George Best used to play..

Keith Fahy, Joseph Ndo, Colin Healy etc are all up there as well

Couldnt hack it in scotland

He nearly made a miracle recovery with Dunfermline. When he took the job they looked out of reach but he turned things around and nearly saved them PLUS took them to the Scottish Cup final, only to lose to a late Celtic goal.

Nearly true. Lost both league status and cup final then lost in europe.

With a bucket side.

He made a bit of a mess of Dunfermline at the start of this season, did a good job with them last year though and has been really good with Derry. I dont like the man but hes clearly a quality manager..