Shamrock Rovers won’t have it all their own way, but I still expect them to win a third title in-a-row.
The Hoops won at a canter the last two years running having been a considerable cut above the rest.
But while Derry City are commanding attention, I think St Pat’s are best placed to push the champions.
Football never fails to surprise you, but Stephen O’Donnell’s controversial move from the Saints to Dundalk did shock me.
That job will always be there for him and I felt he had St Pats in prime condition to have a right crack off Rovers.
But his move up the M1 has created a ripple effect across the league with Tim Clancy going to Inchicore and Kevin Doherty replacing him at Drogheda.
Stevie also brought key players with him from St Pat’s, Tim nabbed some from Drogheda and so on.
Yet Damien Duff has been the biggest signing of the close season and, at 42, he’s still in that young manager bracket.
There’s a noticeable change in culture and outlook being driven from those dugouts, with managers open to exploring different methods.
And that makes it all the more difficult to call before a ball has been kicked with high expectations among most of the chasing pack.
Rovers, by comparison, have had a calm off-season.
Joey O’Brien is a big loss after retiring, but other than a handful of young lads, they have retained their squad. And Jack Byrne’s return and Andy Lyons’ arrival from Bohemians will only strengthen them.
Jack’s return could unsettle one or two lads as there’s some big egos in that Rovers dressing room They can’t all play and noses will be out of joint so pay no attention to anyone saying otherwise.
But it’s a big year ahead with three-in-a-row and European ambitions on the line And Stephen Bradley has already demanded that his players buy into the group ethos or pay the price.
The one area in the Rovers squad that concerns me is between the posts. Alan Mannus was vital to recent success but has looked like a man turning 40 this May.
I’m surprised they haven’t signed a new goalkeeper, because we all saw how Dundalk struggled when they failed to address Gary Rogers’ departure.
From my experience, the team that wins the title is the team that sets out to win it - and that’s still Shamrock Rovers.
I’m not sure what Tim Clancy is saying to his St Pat’s players privately, but publicly he’s not talking about the title.
I’m sure he thinks they can emulate what they did last year, but do the players want to do one better? That’s key. Are they saying it?
Ruaidhri Higgins is on about slow builds at Derry City, insisting it will take time to turn them into challengers.
So I’m tipping Rovers, but it’ll be a tighter battle. More than anything, I want them to get the monkey off their back and reach the group stages in Europe.
Stylish, but let's see the substance
Kudos to the FAI, their strategic plan for the next four years was a snazzy document.
Visually it certainly looked the part and ticked a lot of boxes. The online version was a particular joy to navigate.
But it struck me that if people put as much effort into actually delivering the stated goals and objectives as they do producing the document, we’d be in a better place.
And especially so when it comes to attracting investment.
Out of interest, I had a look at the English and Scottish FA websites to see who they have ‘partnered up with’.
Google, Nike and McDonalds were just some of the heavyweight brands that jumped out at me.
The FAI have some good sponsorship deals of their own, but I’d argue not quite on the same scale.
You can only wonder why when you consider Ireland is a leading tech hub for most of the world’s biggest companies.
If you ask me, we’re heading into a stealth Celtic Tiger and yet Irish football is still struggling to encourage investment.
FAI chief executive Jonathan Hill is a career professional and you’d also wonder if he’ll still be in the role to see the plan home by 2025.
I’d love nothing more than to see the FAI transform the game. I liked the document, I liked the ideas.
But we’ve been here before and actions speak louder than words.
Issa real mystery
Watching Kidderminster against West Ham in the FA Cup, I was trying to figure out how Issa Diop has made it as a pro footballer.
I’ve no idea how much he earns but I’m guessing a Premier League player could command €70,000 or so per week, right?
Well, I’ve seen better players in the Phoenix Park. It’s mind-boggling how some of these guys get through the system.
Roberto Lopes is a far more capable defender and has proved as much here in the league, in Europe and during the recent Africa Cup of Nations.
Stephen Bradley says there’s European interest in ‘Pico’ and it’s not hard to see why. He’s outstanding, a real out-and-out defender who loves keeping clean sheets.
And as much as prolific goal scorers are now a rarity in the game, so are those types of defenders.
If a transfer opportunity surfaces that would make Lopes financially stable, he’d have to take it.
He’s 29, but it’s never too late if you’re good enough.
The world ain’t getting any cheaper and these guys have a short period of time operating at this level.
But let’s not forget, Rovers can also provide him with financial stability so Lopes is in a good place.
I fear it’ll be Dunder-whelming for Stevie
One of the big teams will struggle this season and I’d be worried if I was a Dundalk fan.
That race for Europe will be intense with St Pat’s, Derry City, Sligo Rovers, Bohemians and even Shelbourne in the mix.
There’s always one surprise team that will flourish unexpectedly, whereas one will tank unexpectedly and I honestly think it could be Dundalk.
I get why a return to Oriel Park appeals and it’s a blank canvas after plummeting so low, but Stephen O’Donnell has put himself under pressure taking that job now.
If they don’t get a good start they could be chasing their tails and find themselves in a difficult situation.
There are a lot of question marks over Bohemians too.
The loss of key men like Georgie Kelly, Keith Buckley, Ross Tienery, Andy Lyons and Rob Cornwall is a psychological blow.
After their European run last season and the FAI Cup final appearance, I thought they were transitioning away from that model of high player turnover.
But the Cup final defeat was such a blow and for all the good work around their training facilities, the priority must be on retaining players.
I don’t know how Keith Long does it year after year. It must be very hard.
But the fans really bought into the likes of Kelly, Tierney and Bucko and it’s a blow to them, too, to be starting all over again.
Bohs have proved time and again that they can be competitive but this is Long’s toughest challenge yet.
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