Things are slowly improving for Dundalk who collected another valuable point yesterday to boost their Premier Division survival prospects.

That they faded in the final quarter was perhaps down to fatigue in a no-holds barred contest.

UCD will feel entitled to the three points, but without striker Glen Fitzpatrick, on international duty with the U-17s in South Africa, Theo Dunne's men were never able to grab the vital score.

Fitzpatrick's stand-in, Eoin Bennis had a glorious chance towards the end when played through by Ciaran Martyn, but with just the goalkeeper to beat he sent his shot over the bar. That summed up a frustrating afternoon for UCD.

There was no doubting Dundalk's commitment, but their lack of guile in the final third of the pitch points to a very hard run in for the former champions. They had Steve Williams to thank in the end with the goalkeeper producing an excellent one-handed save to deny Martyn in the 83rd minute.

UCD: Ryan, Mc Donnell, Mahon, Lynch, Delaney, Martyn, Kavanagh, McLoughlin, O'Byrne, Bennis, Dunne. Sub: Kilmurry for Dunne (81 mins).

Dundalk: Williams, Reddish, Crawley, Fortune, Golloghley, Melvin, Campbell, Mc Nulty, Ward, Martin, Brennan. Sub: Harte for Brennan (33 mins).

Referee: E Barr (Dublin).

Cliftonville manager Marty Quinn has threatened to drop the players who flopped in a 1-0 Irish League Premiership defeat to Linfield on Saturday morning. "They left the club myself and our supporters down and need not automatically expect to go in against the Glentoran," he warned.

Linfield won the match, which had a morning kick-off at Solitude for security reasons, with a goal from midfielder Ian Young.

It brought them three points closer to their great rivals Glentoran, but the gap at the top doubled in the afternoon when the men from The Oval defeated Portadown 3-1 at Shamrock Park.