Galway United -v- Drogheda United
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Galway United take on Drogheda United tomorrow night (7.45 pm) in an important game for both clubs, with the home side looking to halt an alarming slide in fortunes and the visitors looking to build on recent successes.
Recent form
Since Galway beat Drogheda in April thanks to Declan Edwards' sole goal for the club, Alan Mathews' men have picked up eight points in comparison to six for Galway, who somehow remain in fifth position. Dave O'Connor's late winner for the Drogs against Cork on Tuesday followed a hard-fought point against Shamrock Rovers, while Galway conceded five and failed to score against both Derry City and Bohemians. Morale could well be at opposite ends of the scale in both camps as Galway look to be getting sucked into the situation forecast by their manager in the opening weeks of the season - a relegation battle.
Drogheda revival
Written off by most after only taking two points from their opening eight games, Alan Mathews has achieved his stated objective of getting his team within touching distance of those above them. A tough-to-beat label has been attached to his quickly assembled squad, who would be a point better off were it not for an injury time winner by Marc Hughes of Bohemians. Indeed, six of their eight losses have only been by a single goal so they have been competitive; goalscoring has been their problem as Tuesday's win was only the second time they have bagged more than one. With Galway struggling for goals they may only need one tomorrow night.
Galway woe
Bar the comfortable win over Bray at home, Galway have struggled for goals in recent weeks. Lone striker Vinny Faherty hasn't scored since mid-April and the limitations of a young squad lacking in numbers has been brought to bear on Ian Foster in recent weeks as a lengthy injury list has robbed him of the likes of Alan Murphy, Shane Fitzgerald, and Sean Kelly to provide options in midfield. The defensive solidity of Kelly, Shane Guthrie, and Garry Breen was at the heart of Galway's good start and a lack of cover for any of these three players should be a major worry for Foster. A win is vitally needed as the side's form against the better teams in the league has seen them get just a single point from those above them; a 1-1 draw in the Brandywell.
Team News
Galway have no new injuries or suspensions to worry about since Tuesday's loss. Vinny Faherty should return after missing that game but Fitzgerald, Kelly, and Murphy are still some time away from a return.
Drogheda will travel west with a full squad but are assessing the fitness of 'keeper Steve Williams and Robbie Martin who both have knee problems. Alan Mathews is happy with how the last two games have turned out and is hopeful for another good result tomorrow night:
"We have the same squad for this match as we did for Tuesday’s game against Cork,” he said. “We’ll have a look at Steve [Williams] and Robbie [Martin] but both players should be OK to play. We fully deserved to beat Cork on Tuesday night. We took the lead, they drew level and then we pushed up and got the winner. We played really well and we fully deserved the three points.
“We’re just looking ahead to the next game. Galway will provide tough opposition but we are confident going into the match. The players are working very hard and have performed very well over recent weeks. We were very unlucky to lose to Bohemians, we fully deserved our draw against Rovers, and we deserved to beat Cork.”
extratime.ie Prediction: 1-1 draw
Recent form
Since Galway beat Drogheda in April thanks to Declan Edwards' sole goal for the club, Alan Mathews' men have picked up eight points in comparison to six for Galway, who somehow remain in fifth position. Dave O'Connor's late winner for the Drogs against Cork on Tuesday followed a hard-fought point against Shamrock Rovers, while Galway conceded five and failed to score against both Derry City and Bohemians. Morale could well be at opposite ends of the scale in both camps as Galway look to be getting sucked into the situation forecast by their manager in the opening weeks of the season - a relegation battle.
Drogheda revival
Written off by most after only taking two points from their opening eight games, Alan Mathews has achieved his stated objective of getting his team within touching distance of those above them. A tough-to-beat label has been attached to his quickly assembled squad, who would be a point better off were it not for an injury time winner by Marc Hughes of Bohemians. Indeed, six of their eight losses have only been by a single goal so they have been competitive; goalscoring has been their problem as Tuesday's win was only the second time they have bagged more than one. With Galway struggling for goals they may only need one tomorrow night.
Galway woe
Bar the comfortable win over Bray at home, Galway have struggled for goals in recent weeks. Lone striker Vinny Faherty hasn't scored since mid-April and the limitations of a young squad lacking in numbers has been brought to bear on Ian Foster in recent weeks as a lengthy injury list has robbed him of the likes of Alan Murphy, Shane Fitzgerald, and Sean Kelly to provide options in midfield. The defensive solidity of Kelly, Shane Guthrie, and Garry Breen was at the heart of Galway's good start and a lack of cover for any of these three players should be a major worry for Foster. A win is vitally needed as the side's form against the better teams in the league has seen them get just a single point from those above them; a 1-1 draw in the Brandywell.
Team News
Galway have no new injuries or suspensions to worry about since Tuesday's loss. Vinny Faherty should return after missing that game but Fitzgerald, Kelly, and Murphy are still some time away from a return.
Drogheda will travel west with a full squad but are assessing the fitness of 'keeper Steve Williams and Robbie Martin who both have knee problems. Alan Mathews is happy with how the last two games have turned out and is hopeful for another good result tomorrow night:
"We have the same squad for this match as we did for Tuesday’s game against Cork,” he said. “We’ll have a look at Steve [Williams] and Robbie [Martin] but both players should be OK to play. We fully deserved to beat Cork on Tuesday night. We took the lead, they drew level and then we pushed up and got the winner. We played really well and we fully deserved the three points.
“We’re just looking ahead to the next game. Galway will provide tough opposition but we are confident going into the match. The players are working very hard and have performed very well over recent weeks. We were very unlucky to lose to Bohemians, we fully deserved our draw against Rovers, and we deserved to beat Cork.”
extratime.ie Prediction: 1-1 draw
About Alan Dooley
is one of Extratime's longest serving contributors. Based in County Galway, Alan has been following the League of Ireland since the mid-1980s. His first memory of the drama of domestic football was Vinny Arkins, then … View Full Profile