SD Galway -v- Wexford Youths

SD GALWAY

SD Galway boss, Tony Mannion, will be without striker Enda Curran for the visit of Wexford Youths on Friday night. Curran, who scored the club’s first goal of the league season against Athlone Town last weekend, also picked up two yellow cards in the game and misses out through suspension. Kieran Foley will also be absent and his injury is expected to keep him out of contention for another three or four weeks.

However, Mannion will have striker Mikey Gilmore and midfielder Eugene Greaney back in his squad having missed the opening game through suspension. He will also be able to select two of Salthill’s promising U19 players, Timmy Molloy and Colm Horgan, who were both unavailable last week as they were on duty with the Irish U19 side.

Despite his side’s defeat to Athlone last Friday, Mannion is impressed with how his squad is shaping up so far.

“The training is going very well”, said Mannion, “with a large squad showing great enthusiasm and commitment. The new players are beginning to bed in and while the understanding on the pitch takes a little while to develop, we are nevertheless moving in the right direction.

“We have said from the start that our aim is to be competitive and to work on continuous improvement. We had the likes of Tommy Bradshaw making his league debut last Friday and doing very well. The added experience of players like Mixie Harty and Nicky Curran will make it easier for new players to get used to the higher level of play.“

WEXFORD YOUTHS

New Wexford boss, Shane Keegan, couldn’t have hoped for a better start to his reign at Ferrycarrig Park with his side thumping local rivals Waterford United 6-0 last Friday night.  That result should give the Youths a huge boost in confidence as they travel to SD Galway for their first away fixture of the new season.

Keegan has no suspensions to hamper his selection with Shane Dempsey having served a suspension last weekend. However,  he will be without Craig Wall who has broken a bone in his hand, and Eric Molloy who is expected to return to training next week.

Perhaps one of Wexford’s shortcomings last season was their reliance on striker Danny Furlong for goals. But with Tom Elmes marking the start of the 2012 season with a four goal salvo against Waterford, hopes are high in the sunny south-east that this year might see a considerable improvement on that front.

"Tom was superb”, said Keegan, in reference to the striker’s four goal haul against Waterford, “but he is superb. People are saying Tom has equaled the amount of goals he scored for the whole of last season in one night and I'm scratching my head wondering why that is.

"He really is a superb player, he can score with his right foot, his left foot and his head and he can shield the ball. I said to him... that this has got to be a 20 goal season, lets try and get one or two tonight, but I wasn't expecting four off him."

Speaking of Wexford's opponents, Keegan was quick to acknowledge that SD Galway present a gunuine obstacle. “I think that you will find that they are very, very good. They had a fantastic pre-season, they have signed a lot of players, some from Galway Utd who are experienced premier division players. In Tony Mannion they have one of the most experienced football guys in the country, I think they will be a major major test for us.”

Referee: Keith Callanan.

MATCH STATS

Wexford have not won any of their last six away games in the league, last winning away from home against Waterford United (1-0) on 15 July 2011.

The last time SD Galway won at home was on 7 August 2011 against... Wexford Youths, when Emmett Shaw and Timmy Molloy scored their goals in a 2-1 win.

SD Galway won two of the three league meetings between these sides last season but Wexford had the last laugh, winning 5-2 at Ferrycarrig Park on the final weekend. The aggregate score over the three league meetings was 10-10.

BETTING

SD Galway 13/8; Draw 23/10; Wexford Youths 7/5.

PREDICTION

Wexford to find SD Galway tougher opponents than Waterford but the momentum is with the visitors:  SD Galway 1 - 2 Wexford Youths.

SD Galway Injury News: Kieran Foley.

SD Galway Suspension News: Enda Curran.

Wexford Youths Injury News: Craig Wall, Eric Molloy.

Wexford Youths Suspension news: None.