The games continue to come thick and fast and so Stephen Kenny did not have much time to dwell on his side's 2-1 defeat of Cork City when he entered the dressing room moments after the final whistle, with the Dubliner already starting to focus on Friday night.

The team talk was halted, though, when he suddenly noticed that the man who had effectively won this game for Dundalk wasn't anywhere to be seen.

“Daryl wasn’t there because he was doing TV,” said Kenny. “I was getting the players ready for Shamrock Rovers on Friday and I said, ‘Where’s Daryl?’. Someone said he’s at the Bernabeu!” His team mates can laugh but in these parts, the Galwayman must be as popular as Ronaldo just now.

Horgan was typically modest about his contribution. “I didn’t have a particularly good game,” he said with a smile, “but I ended up getting two goals which was great.”

Kenny reckoned he was fantastic and that his performance here can drive the team on to another league title. Whoever carries them over the line, completing the three in a row is, the manager says, the main objective in a season still packed with possibilities.

“The league is the priority now. I want the league title. I want that third league title and we’re not relenting in pursuit of that. We’re not backing down from this.”

John Caulfield’s side face Finn Harps on Friday when a win could restore at least some of the momentum lost on a tough night here. There was certainly no concession from the Cork City boss but there was an admission alright that the club’s own title ambitions had certainly just taken a battering here.

“If you were a betting man you would say no, that they have one hand on the trophy,” he said when asked if his side could close the gap again, “but it’s important for us to win on Friday and at least get a bit of momentum.” He was, inevitably, deeply disappointed by the defeat but aside from the decision to award Dundalk the free-kick from which they scored the opener, he seemed to have few complaints.

“These tight decisions can change the match but they were outstanding in the first half and showed their cuteness and experience to kill the game in the last 15 or 20 minutes. Obviously the odds are stacked against us but we can only look after ourselves and see can we keep winning to put a bit of pressure on. But obviously it’s in their court at this stage.”