Under-21 international Richie Baker looks set to leave Shelbourne for Bristol City next week, with Shelbourne manager Dermot Keely admitting yesterday that he is now resigned to losing a player who has made a tremendous impact at Tolka Park since arriving from schoolboy football just 15 months ago.

Baker spent last week training with City's first-team squad and clearly impressed manager Tony Pulis, who contacted his opposite number almost immediately afterwards with a view to making a deal.

Keely now reckons that the two clubs will probably sort something out after the weekend although he insists that while the wishes of the player are a major consideration he will be looking for £100,000 for the young winger.

"I'd put my house on it that Richie will make it," said Keely yesterday "and while there's a balance to be struck between what Richie desires and what's good for Shelbourne, clubs have to realise that they can't just come to this league and take players for nothing.

"If they were to take players from the third division or whatever over there, £100,000 is a snip. Money is just a sign of respect in that regard."

City will have somebody at tomorrow's game between Shelbourne and Shamrock Rovers in Morton Stadium, a match which could well be Baker's last for the Dublin club. Bristol will be keen to see how the winger, who went from being virtually unknown to winning international recognition at under-18, under-20 and under-21 levels in the space of little over a year, performs in that game.

The Ashton Gate club will also be looking at full back Owen Heary who, like Baker, has also been attracting the attention of tomorrow's other English visitors to Santry - Premiership outfit Middlesbrough.

"It's exciting for them (the players) that it's going so well and that they're attracting that type of interest," says Keely, " but from my point of view it's a bit disconcerting to be thinking, all of a sudden, after getting a team together, to go back to losing two of my best players."

The club, however, continues to seek to bring new players in itself. They announced yesterday that they will be looking at two Nigerian players, Adeniyi Legbede and Uche Nwaneri, over the next couple of weeks.

Galway United, meanwhile, are the first of two National League clubs to unveil a new stand this week. While Bohemians are set to return to Dalymount Park for Sunday's game against Sligo Rovers, Don O'Riordan's side welcome St Patrick's Athletic this evening when the ground's new stand will be used for the first time.

The development has taken place in conjunction with the Galway and District League, and while the seating has yet to be installed, the United manager is delighted that an important landmark in the planned redevelopment of Terryland Park has finally been completed.

"It has transformed the place this week," said O'Riordan yesterday "and I think the fact that the place is starting to look like a premier division ground will renew everybody's determination that we remain a premier division side."

With five defeats in their last five outings, O'Riordan concedes that his players are having a little trouble establishing themselves at present. The St Patrick's match is "like a cup final to everybody around the club," he says, and adds "we're hoping to make the sort of signing on Monday that would give everybody around the club a big lift".

The problem, he insisted, is the need for an "older head" to call the shots in a generally very young side. "I don't want to make it sound like I'm making excuses, I'm not. We could do with some more experience out there, but while I can't fault the effort or attitude of the lads here now, I do believe we should be getting better results," he said.

"I know that this is a big game for them all," he added "so maybe we'll get the bit of luck we need to start turning things around."

Marcus Hallows, meanwhile, is the only first-team regular from the premier division to receive a suspension from this week's meeting of the National League Disciplinary Commission.

Suspensions: Two games - Warren Parkes (Athone Town). One game - Marcus Hallows (St Patrick's), Robbie Coyle (Longford Town), trevor Vaughan and Niall Keogh (Kilkenny City), Gareth Lawson and John Scott (both St Francis) and Darren Berrigan (Shamrock Rovers).

All suspensions come into effect on Tuesday, November 9th.