Galway United 0
St. Patrick’s Athletic 1
Caomhán O’Connell reports Eamonn Deacy Park
GALWAY UNITED CAPPED off a terrible week with a disappointing 1-0 loss at home to St. Pat’s in poor conditions in Galway.
Pat’s were ahead inside three minutes. Chris Forrester slung a low corner in from the left. Garry Buckley failed to clear his lines and Jamie Lennon pounced to blast an unstoppable effort to the top corner from 12 yards and a tight angle.
The pace and quality from Kian Leavy and Jake Mulraney stood out in an otherwise disappointing first half that suffered due to the difficult underfoot conditions and familiar West of Ireland rain.
Both wingers drove at their counterparts and caused consternation in doing so. Outside of these forays forward, Galway United were reasonably comfortable and played plenty of football in the Pat’s half.
They struggled to create however, and a glanced header from Ed McCarthy on the stroke of half-time was their first shot on target. Marcelo Pitaluga gathered comfortably in a rare involvement.
The game grew edgy in the third quarter. Slippy conditions made for contentious calls and Eoghan O’Shea had his work cut out keep control. Galway gambled with a quadruple substitution and change of shape for the final quarter. It made little impact initially. The game lacked any sort of rhythm owing to a number of stoppages.
The pitch cut up further and Pat’s were comfortable as they edged towards victory. Their case was made easier when referee O’ Shea made another controversial call, giving Stephen Walsh a straight red for dissent after waving away Tom Costello’s penalty appeal.
It made for a more comfortable finish for Pat’s who were equal to United’s aerial attack throughout. They exerted control in the second and will be pleased with a professional performance that emphasised their qualities to compete at the top of the league.
Galway United: Brendan Clarke; Colm Horgan, Garry Buckley (Rob Slevin 66), Killian Brouder, Regan Donelon; Karl O’ Sullivan (Francely Lomboto 84), David Hurley, Conor McCormack (Al-Amin Kazeem 66), Vince Borden (Tom Costello 66), Ed McCarthy (Patrick Hickey 66); Stephen Walsh
St. Patrick’s Athletic: Marcelo Pitaluga; Carl Alex Sjoberg (Jason McClelland 67), Joe Redmond, Conor Keeley, Luke Turner, Anthony Breslin; Jamie Lennon, Chris Forrester; Jake Mulraney (Cian Kavanagh 75), Ruairi Keating (Mason Melia 90), Kian Leavy (Brandon Kavanagh 75)
Referee: Eoghan O’ Shea
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