DAMIEN DUFF WANTS his players to live like monks so they can bring the magic in their top-of-the-table clash with Derry City on Monday.

Shelbourne are three points clear of the visitors to Tolka Park and face a defining Premier Division fixture coming off last night’s Europa Conference League exit to FC Zurich.

A win would move them six clear, still with a game in hand, with 11 fixtures remaining after Monday.

The Reds earned a 0-0 draw in front of their own fans last night to extended the club’s unbeaten home run in Europe to 10 games.

Candystripes boss Ruairdhi Higgins was in Drumcondra on scouting duties and, in contrast, his side have not played since beating St Patrick’s Athletic 3-0 in the FAI Cup on 21 July.

Duff is adamant he would rather his side’s schedule since then – playing Zurich home and away – but revealed that he made clear the importance of Monday’s game to his players in the dressing room at full-time last night.

“They don’t need to leave their house, their bedroom, they don’t need to speak to people, their wives, anything. Just rest, eat well, sleep well, drink lots of water and let’s bounce in,” Duff said.

“What we’ve done in the last two and a half years is all built on energy, if that isn’t there on Monday night, it won’t be good.

“It’s recover. I spoke openly about what Monday means to me and why they should recover, what Monday should mean to them, where we’re at in this league title race etc etc. It’s not a time to be out.

“If you see any of my players out shopping or golfing, even having a coffee, I’ll be disgusted. Monday is all about recovery, recovery, recovery because, like I said, we are built on energy and  edge and the minute we don’t have that we’re a bang average team. Like most teams who don’t have that.

“So first and foremost, just recover. It’s what top pros do, top pros don’t complain about playing three games in a week. That was the bones of it.”

Defenders Paddy Barrett and Tyreke Wilson are suspended for Monday and it meant that Shane Griffin played only the first 45 minutes at centre back before a pre-planned substitution with Sam Bone.

Sean Boyd was not included in the matchday squad due to injury but is expected to return in time to face Derry.

Duff praised the attitude of his players against Zurich and with more European nights to come next season he

“I hate that gallant effort thing, I’ve heard it enough over the years in Irish football, ‘Ah, we were great and nearly did this and that’. I’m not celebrating a draw or anything like that but I think it’s a celebration for the club and how far it’s come, absolutely,” he said.

“I thought the lads were brilliant and on another night you’d nick a goal, and if you score early, you give them a proper fright. There’s older boys in the team but the group, the team is young, in its infancy and still growing and maybe last week there was a sense of, ‘Do we belong here?’ The performance was full of doubt and apprehension.

“You can’t play top teams with doubt and apprehension. They didn’t do that [last night], they knew and showed they belonged on the same pitch and you’d have to say a really positive result. It’s a really positive result and performance going into Monday.”