STEPHEN KENNY denied his St Pat’s side are in a relegation battle as Dundalk climbed off the foot of the table for the first time in three months.
Four weeks to the day he was sacked by the Saints, and replaced by Kenny, Jon Daly watched his side go 2-0 up within three minutes and 15 seconds with a third scored before the midway point of the first half.
St Pat’s roared back with two goals in six minutes but the second half a tamer affair with substitutes to the fore.
Jay McClelland pulled a shot across goal as St Pat’s chased an equaliser with Kenny’s son Eoin drawing a save from Danny Rogers after he came on for the visitors.
Dundalk leapfrogged Drogheda with the win and are seven points behind St Pat’s but with two games in hand.
Asked if they were in a relegation battle, Kenny – who has taken four points from his five games in charge – said: “I wouldn’t say that but we need to win matches.”
Daly has taken four points over the weekend and, although he downplayed the personal aspect, there was huge satisfaction in putting one over his former side.
Daly said: “If there is such a thing as going 3-0 up too early, I think we had it, because you know they’re going to throw the kitchen sink at you.
“You look at the players they had on the pitch at the end, it was all-out attack and we had to defend really well.
“The first task I set them was ‘Can we get off the bottom of the table? Can we do that as soon as possible?’
“We’ve done it and it’s now about trying to stay off the bottom.”
Dundalk took the lead in the second minute after Rob Hennessy awarded what looked like a soft free-kick when Jamie Lennon tangled with Cameron Elliott.
On the opening night of the season, against Shamrock Rovers, Jamie Gullan had shown his threat from set-pieces and he delivered another fantastic strike here.
From 35 yards, he lifted his effort over the wall and into the top corner with Rogers unable to keep it out.
If there was little he could do about that, he could have done a lot better with the second.
Daryl Horgan began the move, passing to Archie Davies who advanced with purpose before checking inside and laying the ball off to Ryan O’Kane.
Rogers got his hands to his low drive but it squirmed under his body and trickled over the line.
They had a penalty appeal turned down when Conor Keeley struck the ball with his arm as he rolled on the ground from a Horgan corner.
But they got a third in the 22nd minute when Horgan had gotten the better of Lennon and then squared it to Gullan.
He took a touch before drilling a left-foot shot past Rogers.
St Pat’s were in disarray with Dundalk fans singing ‘There’s only one Stephen Kenny’ which brought a wry smile from their former manager.
PAT’S FIGHTBACK
But they fought their way back into the game, with Chris Forrester converting a penalty after Luke Turner’s shot struck Horgan on the arm.
Then, Cian Kavanagh headed on Jake Mulraney’s corner off Horgan’s head and into the path of Lennon who controlled with his left before smashing it home with his right.
Dundalk went close to a fourth on the stroke of half-time with Horgan pulling the ball back to Gullan.
But his shot was blocked by Joe Redmond with the former Ireland winger offside when it came back to him.
Horgan, Davies and Zak Johnson all shone with reports in Scotland claiming Motherwell had been rebuffed in a bid to sign Davies, who is also a target for St Pat’s and Bohemians.
But Daly said: “I am not surprised. He is arguably the best right back in the league.
“I have had calls from other clubs in the League looking to get him, offering little deals, players swapped. We are not looking to lose Archie.”
SUN STAR MAN: Daryl Horgan (Dundalk)
ST PAT’S: Rogers 5; McLaughlin 6 (Palmer 58, 5), Redmond 5, Keeley 5, Turner 5 (Nolan 70, 5); Lennon 6, Forrester 7; Melia 7, Leavy 6, Mulraney 5 (McClelland 78, 5); C Kavanagh 5 (B Kavanagh 58, 4)
DUNDALK: Munro 6; Davies 8, Boyle 7, Johnson 8, Bradshaw 6; Horgan 8, Muller 6, Doyle 7 (Mountney 64, 5), O’Kane 6 (Durrant 64, 5); Gullan 8 (Animasahun 85, 4), Elliott 6 (Kenny 75, 5).
REFEREE: R Hennessy (Limerick) 5