THE lesson from 2014 is that the League of Ireland is a place where pre-season predictions can quickly begin to look very silly.

When the fixture list pitted Dundalk and Cork together on the final day, nobody was anticipating that it would become a winner-takes-all title decider.

Dundalk, runners-up the previous year, were viewed as genuine contenders at the beginning of the campaign. But Cork were very much on the periphery of that discussion, rated as outsiders despite the interesting appointment of John Caulfield as manager.

He succeeded in constructing a solid team that gained confidence from winning and had experienced heads in the right positions who carried them all the way to the final hurdle.

Dundalk ultimately claimed the crown, and were widely hailed as deserved champions, yet the Cork story illustrated what is possible in a competitive league.

It's difficult to see a team charging from the pack this term; the top five clubs from last season have budgets and squads that will make it hard for a member of the peloton to join their race.

Still, the fact that there are five genuine challengers for the crown sets the SSE Airtricity League apart from many other European leagues.

Dundalk, Cork, St Patrick's Athletic, Shamrock Rovers and an improved Sligo Rovers are all capable of going the distance. Pundits can reasonably make a strong case for a team that may well finish up in fifth.

In a congested campaign, momentum is everything. Recent history indicates that more than four defeats will be enough to derail a challenge; Sligo's disastrous stutter out of the blocks 12 months ago spelled the end for Ian Baraclough and, Setanta Cup aside, their season fell to pieces.

So the opening month will be very informative. Sluggishness will be punished. After a relatively stable winter in the sense that the leading sides have not dramatically changed their dressing room - a contrast from a few years back - the key will be finding out if settled sides have retained their desire and focus.

An absence of those attributes is one reason that is consistently offered for the lack of back-to-back winners on the recent roll of honour. Only three teams have managed to do it since the turn of the century.

That pressure falls on Dundalk manager Stephen Kenny this year and he is comfortable with that.

He is still earning plaudits for delivering a tenth title to Oriel Park and has just accepted the role of Grand Marshal for the town's St Patrick's Day parade. However, he sees no evidence of his squad resting on their laurels.

"I think obviously in the past teams have lost key personnel and they possibly lose their hunger and drive and all those things but I haven't noticed any complacency," says Kenny, who points out that Dundalk have never won two in a row in their storied history.

"It's been very much feet on the ground in pre-season, working hard and knowing the areas we need to improve. We're working on those areas and I think a lot of our players have the capacity to really improve in a considerable way.

"There's so many in their early 20s that can really get better, that's what we have to strive to do. We're not living off last season. I don't get that feeling."

Kenny knows that his closest pursuers have strengthened. Cork's capture of Liam Miller and Alan Bennett adds seniority and presence, while Karl Sheppard strengthens the attack.

Dundalk did lose top scorer Pat Hoban to England and are therefore relying on Dave McMillan and Kurtis Byrne up front while they search for another option with Mark Quigley a possible if he regains full fitness.

Rather than dwelling on the frustration of missing out on some targets, Kenny is emphasising the strengths of the individuals who decided to stay in his dressing room.

"I don't care who anybody signs," he asserts. "People have said Rovers have signed so many internationals, Cork have signed so many internationals but for us, we can't influence any of that.

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"We are delighted to keep hold to some of the players we had. Sean Gannon, Millwall came in for him, I thought we would lose him. Daryl Horgan, he had a lot of interest. Richie (Towell) was the obvious one. Rovers came in for Darren Meenan and Stephen O'Donnell. The Dublin clubs were in for Andy Boyle. We could have lost a lot of players so if you said to me we'd only lose one, I'd have taken that."

Rovers did steal a march on their rivals by nabbing Keith Fahey from St Patrick's Athletic and that will help Pat Fenlon's cause greatly.

He was busier in the market than his counterparts at the business end and has completely refreshed his forward department with Danny North joined by Mikey Drennan (Aston Villa) and Gareth McCaffrey (Hibs) who have come back from across the water.

With Fahey and Stephen McPhail in the same side, they are capable of dominating games in midfield but it will count for little unless they strike up a rapport with their attackers. This will make or break their prospects.

Cork have the Miller and Colin Healy axis, while Gavan Holohan should bring subtlety to an outfit that had quite a direct and physical approach in their title push. Caulfield recognised the need to bring in options that allowed them to vary things but there is no guarantee that they will immediately find the right mix.

Sligo Rovers, now managed by Owen Heary, have a lot of ground to make up but they have scored plenty of goals in their warm-up friendlies. Strikers are a particularly valuable commodity in this league at the moment and Dinny Corcoran has hit the ground running in his new full-time home. They may not have the defensive stability as the other big guns, though.

And then there's St Patrick's Athletic, the 2013 champions who are now proud holders of the FAI Cup.

They have lost Fahey - outstanding at the Aviva - but they fended off approaches for the league's top scorer Christy Fagan.

Pat's scored 66 goals on their way to third in league, 15 more than Cork, and 23 more than Shamrock Rovers. Only Dundalk, with 73, managed a bigger tally and they have lost their main contributor.

Fagan, Conan Byrne and Chris Forrester are a potent front three and Ciaran Kilduff strengthens their hand.

"We've got the two-up-front option there if we need it," says Buckley. "Ciaran can do a wide job for us too, he brings a lot to the group. Overall, we're happy with where we're at. If we perform well, we'll get a fair share of results."

If Buckley can knit together his back four and encourage Greg Bolger to stay on his best behaviour in midfield then they have the firepower to bring another trophy to Inchicore. The Saints are a speculative selection in what should be a compelling race.

Irish Independent