Waterford United -v- Kildare County
Credit:
Bottom of the league Kildare County travel to the RSC tomorrow to face title contenders Waterford United (kick-off 7pm). The Blues are in superb form at present; they are on a run of six straight wins and will be confident of making Kildare the seventh.
The Suirsiders continue to boast the league’s most prolific strike force; Willie John Kiely and Graham Cummins sit atop the goal scoring charts on seven goals apiece. Both men also scored in the recent extra-time EA Sports Cup win over FC Carlow and seemingly show no signs of letting up. Having arrived as a centre-half, Cummins has proved a revelation up front and his sensational performances during the past month have earned him widespread recognition, not least here at extratime.ie, where he has scooped our player of the month award for April.
Kildare have been having a nightmare season and in truth don’t appear cut out to compete at this level. Their recent 6-0 demolition against Sporting Fingal was another in a series of results proving a damning indictment of their credentials at this level. There have been consequences of these performances however, Joey Somerville has replaced Thomas Donnelly as manager and will be hoping to change the club’s fortunes. He got off to a bad start however as Kildare were beaten 3-0 by Wexford Youths last time out. Despite their apparent weaknesses, Blues boss Stephen Henderson refuses to underestimate the Kildare challenge.
“When we play to form we are right up there with the best of them, and I believe we will be up there all season given the rub of the green. Hopefully we can keep up the winning mentality against Kildare County next weekend. The game will tell a lot about ourselves as individuals. It is hugely important that we, as a group, treat Kildare with respect and play to the standards we have set ourselves this season. Their result against Fingal was a freak and unlikely to be repeated, but if we are serious about having a good season then this is a game we must win.”
Waterford come into this encounter on the back of an impressive, professional performance at home to Mervue United last weekend. The Galway outfit were outplayed from start to finish and Waterford should have won by more than the two goals they managed. Henderson was largely unimpressed by his side’s performance but was pleased with a vital three points in the hunt for promotion to the premier division.
“I think it was important that we got the points on the board from the game today because we have some big games coming up in the very near future against the top teams, and it’s always great to win the games that you’re expected to win, especially at home. We lost our shape somewhat at times, and I was not happy with that. We did not get the ball out wide when we should have. We missed numerous chances in the first half, and by not taking those chances this allowed them [to] come back into the game somewhat, when in truth we should have been out of sight by half time. Having said that, however, we looked much better in the second half, and when we scored there was only going to be one result. We have had a lot of games in recent weeks, but all of the lads have come through with flying colours. I have a fantastic group of lads in that dressing room and I am proud of them all. They take on board what we say to them and that was proved at half time today. We lost our way and to be honest we didn’t play as well as we could have, but we have the points and that is the sign of a good team.”
The Blues have no injury or suspension worries coming into this game with midfielder Paul Carey having recovered from an ankle knock which ruled him out of the Mervue game. This should be a routine win for the home side but Kildare will be desperate to give a good account of themselves and restore some pride to a poor season, and after all, stranger things have happened in football.
Betting: Waterford: 1/16, Kildare: 22/1, Draw: 13/2
Extratime.ie prediction: I can’t see past a comfortable home win and Waterford put 5 past a superior Monaghan side, but a new manager can have a galvanizing effect on a team so I expect some Kildare resistance. With that said the gulf in quality between the teams should be evident. 5-0 Waterford.
The Suirsiders continue to boast the league’s most prolific strike force; Willie John Kiely and Graham Cummins sit atop the goal scoring charts on seven goals apiece. Both men also scored in the recent extra-time EA Sports Cup win over FC Carlow and seemingly show no signs of letting up. Having arrived as a centre-half, Cummins has proved a revelation up front and his sensational performances during the past month have earned him widespread recognition, not least here at extratime.ie, where he has scooped our player of the month award for April.
Kildare have been having a nightmare season and in truth don’t appear cut out to compete at this level. Their recent 6-0 demolition against Sporting Fingal was another in a series of results proving a damning indictment of their credentials at this level. There have been consequences of these performances however, Joey Somerville has replaced Thomas Donnelly as manager and will be hoping to change the club’s fortunes. He got off to a bad start however as Kildare were beaten 3-0 by Wexford Youths last time out. Despite their apparent weaknesses, Blues boss Stephen Henderson refuses to underestimate the Kildare challenge.
“When we play to form we are right up there with the best of them, and I believe we will be up there all season given the rub of the green. Hopefully we can keep up the winning mentality against Kildare County next weekend. The game will tell a lot about ourselves as individuals. It is hugely important that we, as a group, treat Kildare with respect and play to the standards we have set ourselves this season. Their result against Fingal was a freak and unlikely to be repeated, but if we are serious about having a good season then this is a game we must win.”
Waterford come into this encounter on the back of an impressive, professional performance at home to Mervue United last weekend. The Galway outfit were outplayed from start to finish and Waterford should have won by more than the two goals they managed. Henderson was largely unimpressed by his side’s performance but was pleased with a vital three points in the hunt for promotion to the premier division.
“I think it was important that we got the points on the board from the game today because we have some big games coming up in the very near future against the top teams, and it’s always great to win the games that you’re expected to win, especially at home. We lost our shape somewhat at times, and I was not happy with that. We did not get the ball out wide when we should have. We missed numerous chances in the first half, and by not taking those chances this allowed them [to] come back into the game somewhat, when in truth we should have been out of sight by half time. Having said that, however, we looked much better in the second half, and when we scored there was only going to be one result. We have had a lot of games in recent weeks, but all of the lads have come through with flying colours. I have a fantastic group of lads in that dressing room and I am proud of them all. They take on board what we say to them and that was proved at half time today. We lost our way and to be honest we didn’t play as well as we could have, but we have the points and that is the sign of a good team.”
The Blues have no injury or suspension worries coming into this game with midfielder Paul Carey having recovered from an ankle knock which ruled him out of the Mervue game. This should be a routine win for the home side but Kildare will be desperate to give a good account of themselves and restore some pride to a poor season, and after all, stranger things have happened in football.
Betting: Waterford: 1/16, Kildare: 22/1, Draw: 13/2
Extratime.ie prediction: I can’t see past a comfortable home win and Waterford put 5 past a superior Monaghan side, but a new manager can have a galvanizing effect on a team so I expect some Kildare resistance. With that said the gulf in quality between the teams should be evident. 5-0 Waterford.
About Dean Hayes
Dean covers Waterford United and, due to a challenge from Gareth, writes in an increasingly Gonzo style. Having found himself with a considerable surplus of a culinary herb, Dean founded sister 'site extrathyme.ie some years … View Full Profile