Bohemians vs Derry City Predictions

Things continued to look rosy for Bohemians last time out, as they got the better of Waterford away from home. Monday’s hosts now have a six-point cushion in 3^rd place, though avoiding defeat in this game is important, as Derry City, who’ve played a game less than Bohemians, are only six points behind and are thus not out of the hunt for a Europa League place.

After what was a solid first half of the campaign, Bohemians appeared to be moving in the wrong direction, as they went five games without a win during May, though things have since picked up again. Keith Long’s men have won each of their last three league games, while they’ve scored seven in their last two at home, so they ought to come into this match full of confidence.

Their efforts have been pleasing all round, but Bohemians can be especially pleased with how they’ve performed in front of a home crowd this season. Only three teams have accumulated more points at home, while only the current top two have won more home games than Bohemians, who’ve won six, drawn two and lost three of their matches at Dalymount Park, scoring 15 and conceding ten.

However, the recent home performances of Long’s side haven’t been overly great, particularly in the defensive third. Scoring goals isn’t often a problem for Bohemians at home, as they’ve notched eight in their last three, though they’ve been finding it tough to keep teams out, shipping six in their last three. Monday’s hosts are also without a clean sheet in five on home soil.

Likewise, Derry have struggled to keep teams at bay on their travels of late. The visitors go to Dalymount Park having conceded four in their last three on the road, while they’ve kept just one clean sheet in their last seven travelling matches.

Fortunately, Derry have shown in recent times that they’re more than capable of scoring goals. Last time out on the road, they notched four against Cork City, while they scored two against Shamrock, who currently occupy 2^nd place, prior to that. In fact, no team in the division has scored as many goals as Derry have away from home during the current campaign, so even if they’re weak at the back, shipping 14 in 12 on the road, they’re at least strong going forward.

When we take the recent home efforts of Bohemians and put them together with the recent performances of Derry on the road, ‘Over 2.5 Goals’ starts to look a good bet. More importantly, given that we’re talking about the second and fourth highest scorers in the division, who’ve seen an average of 2.27 and 2.75 goals in their respective home and away games, it’s easy to feel that the above selection is ever so slightly overpriced. Therefore, backing the goals to flow at Dalymount Park on Monday evening offers punters a smidgen on value.