As Champions League preparations go, a trip to the Brandywell should be up there in terms of difficulty but Dundalk will travel in confident mood.
The Lilywhites' last three Foyleside visits have yielded nine points, with 10 goals scored and just one conceded. The 2-0 win in Derry in March followed 4-0 and 4-1 wins for the away side there on Dundalk's march to last season's league title.
“It’s going to be a tough game in Derry but we have a good record there in the last few years," acknowledged midfielder Jamie McGrath. "We seem to play well up there.
“We’d like to take that into Friday night and that will give us confidence but we're expecting a difficult game, we just want to get the win and hopefully we can get it."
For Dundalk assistant coach Ruaidhri Higgins, who was a former Brandywell favourite, it's about the players keeping on doing what they've been doing on a magnificent run.
The Oriel men have raced into an eight-point lead at the top of the table on the back of eight straight victories and are unbeaten in their last 14 league games.
Derry's two-goal comeback to earn a draw in May is the only mini-blip in that period.
“It has been a great return over the past few months and the players deserve massive credit for that and how they have played," said Higgins.
“We defend from the front and it's a collective thing, when we score it’s collective thing too because of how we build from the back.
“The players deserve huge credit for their professionalism and how they've got themselves in this position, and we want to stay there."
Michael Duffy, another former Candystripe, is looking forward to going home but believes Derry will put it up to Dundalk tonight.
“It’s always a massive game for us, going back to our hometown and playing. I’ve enjoyed playing there every time we’ve been up,” said Duffy.
“Derry are the only team to take points of us in a long while and they’re on a good run, so it’s going to be a tough game.
"But we’re on a good run as well, so it’s massive for us to finish a big week off with another three points”.
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