League leaders Derry City travel to Dublin to face Bohemians as the Premier Division returns following the international break.
It’s one of two games in the capital as St Patrick’s Athletic host Drogheda United, while Shelbourne, UCD and Shamrock Rovers are all on the road.
Rovers make the long trek north to Finn Harps, Shels travel to face second-placed Sligo at the Showgrounds and the Students go to Oriel Park to face Dundalk looking for their first win.
Bohemians v Derry City
Bohs boss Keith Long will hope it’s fifth time lucky as his side look to break a run of four games without a win.
Opponents don’t come more daunting than the in-form league leaders, who have racked up three consecutive wins and remain unbeaten this season.
Bohs’ form has been more patchy, with a victory over St Patrick’s Athletic on the second day their only victory, and a draw with UCD last time out particularly frustrating.
Long can at least welcome back Rory Feely after he missed the UCD match with suspension, but James Finnerty and Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe are doubtful.
Michael Duffy and Ciaron Harkin are out long-term for Derry, while Danny Lafferty is a doubt, but Patrick McEleney and Matty Smith are both back in training.
St Patrick’s Athletic v Drogheda United
Tim Clancy comes up against his former club for the first time on Friday night as Drogheda United make the trip down the M1.
A 2-1 defeat at the Brandywell two weeks ago saw Derry City leapfrog Saints to the top of the table going into the break.
Will Patching’s goal deep in injury time snatched all three points for the home side after Tom Grivosti’s first Saints goal had cancelled out a Patching opener.
The Athletic will look to stay in contention with three points against a Drogheda side who have started strongly under new boss Kevin Doherty.
“It's going to be a bit of a weird one against my old team, but it is what it is, that's football,” Clancy said before the game.
“The turnover of players between ourselves and Drogheda from last season is huge. I think it's seven of the starting 11 from last season have left, so it's completely different squads.”
Jamie Lennon and Paddy Barrett continue to miss out for Saints, while Darragh Markey, Mark Hughes, Ryan Brennan, Luke Heeney are out for Drogheda.
Finn Harps v Shamrock Rovers
It’s a trip to Ballybofey and the Fun Harps for Shamrock Rovers as the champions look to get back to winning ways after successive draws.
Rovers played out a thrilling 2-2 draw with Sligo Rovers in the last game before the break as they missed an opportunity to return to the summit.
Harps, meanwhile, picked up their first win of the season as they hammered Damien Duff’s Shelbourne 3-0 at Tolka Park.
Rovers have a clean bill of health after missing several players to illness before the break, though Pico Lopes returned from international duty with Cape Verde with a broken hand.
"We know we'll have to go up there and work extremely hard. That's what the game demands,” said Hoops boss Stephen Bradley.
“We'll respect everything they're going to bring to the game and then impose ourselves on the game as soon as we can. The aim is to go there and win three points."
Sligo Rovers v Shelbourne
Shelbourne make the trip west in search of a huge improvement after a 3-0 thumping by Finn Harps in front of their own fans two weeks ago.
Draws against Dundalk and Bohemians had offered signs of encouragement but they were well-beaten by an until-then winless Harps.
Sligo, by contrast, were minutes from topping the table only to succumb to a second-half fightback from Rovers after leading 2-0 at the break.
“It was disappointing as it was not reflective of how we train but I’m sure it was just an outlier and sometimes those results act as a wake up call,” said Shels boss Damien Duff.
“It was frustrating because before that against Bohs we looked a proper team but hopefully we can get back to that tomorrow,” he added.
Sean McSweeney, JJ Lunney and Shane Griffin miss out for Shels, while Sligo boss Liam Buckley has a full squad to choose from after Nando Pijnaker returned from international duty.
Dundalk v UCD
UCD are the last remaining side in the league without a win after six games but they’ve been close in every game they’ve played bar the opening day defeat to Rovers.
Andy Myler’s side drew their third game of the season, all of which came at the UCD Bowl, against Bohs before the break as Sam Todd notched his second of the season.
A defeat in the derby clash with Drogheda United last time out will have frustrated Stephen O’Donnell as his side lost their unbeaten record.
Dundalk have Darragh Leahy back fit after he missed the first seven games with injury, while there is no team news for UCD.
