Column: Who will thrive in the League of Ireland?

By Alan Cawley

The new SSE Airtricity League season is upon us and I believe it will bring about an extremely competitively fought title race.

To say I'm excited is a major understatement. It has been well-documented how farcical it is to have such a long off-season break but if there is one benefit, it makes the start of the league all the more eagerly anticipated.

It's a time to focus on the positives that Friday night will bring. Live football is back and there are a number of clubs that feel they can come out on top come the end of October.

The league will be divided in three, I feel. Four big guns will battle it out for the top prize with very little between each side.

There will be two sides sandwiched between top and bottom who will be trying to hang on to the coattails of the top four and doing all they can to break into it for a European place, but just coming up short, I imagine.

Then the bottom six will be a mishmash of the remaining teams, battling out their own little mini-league with the sole aim to stay in the division.

Here is how I see the league shaping up:

1: Dundalk

The Lilywhites have every necessary characteristic to go and defend their title. They are well-organised, extremely fit, dynamic, possess goal threats all over the pitch and most of all they are very, very hungry to succeed as a group.

Defending a league title is a very difficult thing to do, but I believe they are the team to beat this season. Stephen Kenny has strengthened well in the close season, most notably the acquisitions of Gary Rogers, arguably the best keeper in the league, and Ronan Finn. Finn is as good as any midfielder in the league on his day. He is a most exciting addition at Oriel, especially given the quality that Kenny already has at his disposal in that area of the pitch.

Holding onto Richie Towell is another massive positive, as it looked like he would definitely move across the water at the end of last season. Kenny has the nice headache of trying to pick a midfield three from Chris Shields, Stephen O'Donnell, Towell and Finn, but I'm sure he won't mind one little bit.

The loss of Patrick Hoban will be felt as Kenny hasn't signed anyone to replace him, but I think David McMillan is ready-made to step up to the plate. Whenever he was called upon last season he more than played his part and I think we will certainly see the best of him this season. He is a team player, very unselfish and with the amount of chances this team creates he can emulate Hoban's achievement.

2: St Patrick's Athletic

Liam Buckley's side ended 2014 on a real high with a brilliant FAI Cup success, but that came off the back of a frustrating attempt to defend their league title.

I think their league form suffered for two reasons. Defensively, they were nowhere near as watertight as the previous year: that was mainly due to the departure of Conor Kenna. There was a real consistency and continuity in their defence in 2013 and we didn't see that last year. The emergence of Sean Hoare was a positive and I think he will benefit hugely from last season and can become an important player this year. If they can keep Jason McGuinness fit he still has a big part to play and his experience will be a huge help in the dressing-room.

The second reason that they fell short was the struggle to accommodate Keith Fahey. Fahey's role in the team never quite clicked until the latter part of the season.

The Saints are my favourite team to watch in the league. They play such an attractive brand of football, they have match winners all over the pitch and in Chris Forrester they have the most technically gifted player in the league. Holding onto Christy Fagan was the best bit of business Buckley did in the close season. He was the best player in the country last year. I think they will push Dundalk all the way this year.

3: Cork City

The surprise outfit of last season, John Caulfield and his troops fought right to the bitter end. People kept writing them off as title contenders, myself included, but they proved every one of us wrong, eventually coming up just short in the final game of the season.

That wonderful season raises expectations, and the Cork City faithful will be hoping for a repeat performance, and maybe even to go one better. Caulfield has assembled a very strong and experienced looking squad.

The additions of Liam Miller and Alan Bennett are not only fantastic for themselves but also for the league. Can they go one better? I don't think so, but I'm sure they'll be out to prove everyone wrong again. They are not the most attractive team you'll watch, but very well drilled and extremely efficient.

Another huge plus for them is the fantastic home support they receive each week in Turner's Cross. It was worth a good few points to them last season and I'm sure Caulfield will be hoping the people come out in their droves to get behind his charges once again.

4: Shamrock Rovers

Now that Pat Fenlon has his feet firmly under the table in Tallaght, I'm expecting a major improvement in this team. He has freshened up the squad and knowing Pat he will expect nothing less than a major title challenge this year.

The signing of Keith Fahey is massive and Fenlon will be hoping the former Republic of Ireland international will be the driving force behind that title push. I've watched Fahey in pre-season and he looks as fit as ever. Technically there is never a doubt about the midfielder, but he did pick up a couple of niggly little injuries last year and he'll be hoping to stay away from those this year. I'm expecting big things.

My concerns for Rovers are defensively, I think they are a bit short in that area. Conor Kenna has only joined in training last week and it's crucial they start the season with him. The replacements lack the experience and talent of Kenna.

Danny North will lead the line and given the right service he will score goals. Whether they've enough firepower as Dundalk or Pat's remains to be seen but we will definitely see a big improvement on last year's 12-point gap between Rovers and the eventual winners, but perhaps not in the standings.

5: Sligo Rovers

Owen Heary has stepped into the hot seat in the Showgrounds and his appointment really has got the people of Sligo talking. There is an excitement about the new regime at the Bit O'Red. Owen was one of the most decorated players in the country as a player, and he has a real desire and hunger to be exactly the same as a manager.

It was a big move on his part to uproot from the comforts of the Big Smoke, but he is doing it for all the right reasons; he wants to succeed. He has raided former club Bohemians for some players and also signed a couple of unknown quantities in Morten Nielsen from Denmark, once of Chelsea, and also current Estonian international Sander Puri.

Heary's drive and determination is infectious and he will demand that off each and every one of his squad members. I can't see them winning the league, but I think a European place is possible. That would be seen as success by the Sligo Rovers board.

6: Derry City

Derry City are a funny one for me. A huge club with great tradition, I think it's about time we started to see them fulfil their potential.

The man charged with that job, Peter Hutton, is very capable. He took them to a FAI Cup final last season but it probably came a little bit early in this team's development. They came up short but the experience of that day will certainly stand them in good stead for this year.

In Patrick McEleney they have an extremely creative and exciting player and they will be looking to him to produce the goods. Derry have lost Rory Patterson and replaced him with Anthony Elding; they'll need him to reproduce the kind of form he showed a couple of seasons ago at Sligo Rovers.

Home form is key if the Candystripes are to have a good season and it's imperative they make The Brandywell the fortress we once knew it to be. However, the European places are likely to elude them.

7: Bohemians

There is new manager in Dalymount Park this year. Keith Long did ever so well in reinvigorating Athlone Town last year but his efforts were in vain. It was a big ask from the outset. His efforts didn't go unnoticed and he has been handed a great opportunity at a club of Bohemians' stature.

It's certainly not an easy challenge as the glory days of recent seasons seem a distant memory, but it's one I'm sure Long is relishing.

Finances dictate the shape of the squad nowadays so there are no marquee signings. Jason Byrne and Dave Mulcahy play on for another season and they are important to Bohs. The duo are experienced: Byrne will score goals, that'll never change, no matter what age he is. They will be involved in this mini-league in the lower half of the table and supporters of Bohemians will be hoping they will be best of the rest.

8 Longford Town

Longford return to the Premier Division and they are another team who very much should be playing top-flight football.

Tony Cousins has achieved his goal of taking them back to the Premier League and he'll be looking to make a real mark this season.

There are a couple of good signings in Mark Rossiter and Conor Powell: they will slot in nicely alongside experienced heads such as Patrick Flynn and Stephen Rice.

One player to look out for is David O'Sullivan, he has been banging in goals in the First Division and it'll be interesting to see how he manages the step up. I think he will do well. He is big, strong and will not mind the physical battles he'll get. If he can score as regularly as he did in previous seasons, Longford may just surprise a few and undoubtedly he is key to their survival.

9: Galway United

I'm looking forward to having Galway United back in the Premier Division. The league will benefit from it and I think the city of Galway also needs it. Tommy Dunne is at the helm and he has done a brilliant job since taking over, winning promotion in his first season.

He will know better than anyone about the task he faces as the gulf in quality between the First Premier grows year-on-year. I think he will have them well prepared and ready for the challenge though. Samuel Oji could prove an inspired signing but like all other teams around that bottom half, the question will be: where will the goals come from? I think they'll be fine again. To be back at Eamonn Deacy Park will be a welcome part of this new season.

10: Limerick

It has been a very tough close season for Limerick. The situation must be demoralising for all involved.

Firstly, chairman Pat Sullivan released a statement explaining he was not willing to carry on funding the club the way he has been the been last few years. Then, the news that their new stadium, the Markets Field would not be ready in time for the new season was announced.

I have a lot of sympathy for O'Sullivan because he has poured his heart, soul and money into this club in recent seasons without really seeing much return on the field. The situation regarding the move back to what had been Limerick's traditional home, which by all accounts was out of their hands, looks so bad for people looking in from the outside.

This was going to be a fresh start, a new beginning for Limerick FC. It remains to be seen when it'll be completed. They have been saying it will be ready in a month, but a League of Ireland month and a normal person's month are two completely different things. It's certainly not ideal for manager Martin Russell, of whom I'm a big fan, but what looked like a really exciting job when he took over now isn't quite as attractive. This negative publicity certainly doesn't help matters.

11: Drogheda United

Johnny McDonnell takes over at United Park this year and he will certainly have his work cut out. Never a man to shirk a challenge, the former Pat's boss will be doing everything in his power to make them a success. The squad isn't overly blessed with quality but one interesting signing is the return of local boy Sean Thornton.

I played with Sean at schoolboy level and he is one who certainly does possess plenty of quality. McDonnell will have them very organised and he'll try to make them as tough to beat as possible. I'm sure he will be the first to admit though; the task is a big one.

12: Bray Wanderers

Another man with a big job on his hands is Alan Mathews. Bray always hover around the bottom three or four places but find a way of staying up. They will have their work cut out to do that again this year. I don't think they can escape it this year but I'll look forward to watching how it all unfolds.

Overall I see a top four that will be very close. The middle two will be doing everything in their power to break into those positions and the rest are set to scrap for survival.