St. Patricks Athletic 1 - 1 UCD
- Seamus Egan
- Fri, Apr 15 2011
A late goal from Graham Rusk earned UCD a deserved point against St. Patricks Athletic at Richmond Park on Friday night.
St Patricks Athletic dominated the first half of this encounter and their first major opportunity came on 17 minutes but defender Evan McMillan headed a corner over the bar.
UCD looked useful in possession at times, with Paul Corry and Robbie Creevy trying to spread the play but the visitors lacked penetration.
The first half’s most controversial incident occurred on 35 minutes. After fine build up play by St. Pats, the ball broke to Derek Doyle in the area. His shot looked to have struck UCD defender Paul O' Conor in the hand. The linesman frantically waved his flag, but referee Paul Tuite let play continue much to the outrage of the home fans and players.
Pete Mahon's team dominated the later stages of the opening half and it was no surprise when they took the lead just before the interval. Danny North picked out Ian Daly and his inch perfect pass into the six-yard box was finished off by Anto Murphy to give The Saints a 1-0 lead at half-time.
The quality in the second half was rather poor at times. On 57 minutes UCD had a wonderful chance to equalize. Paul O' Conor's wonderful cross picked out Mark Langtry and his precise header found Dean Marshall, who somehow miskicked from six yards out.
St. Pat’s should have gone two up on 67 minutes. UCD right back Paul O' Conor headed the ball straight to Ian Daly but he somehow blazed the ball over the bar from close range.
UCD did improve as the game wore on and on 81 minutes, they missed another golden opportunity.
Ciaran Nangle's wonderful cross found the head of substitute Samir Belhout. Belhout's header was brilliantly tipped around the post by Pats goalkeeper Gary Rogers. Danny North should have finished the tie on 89 minutes. Pat's number nine was through one-on-one with Ger Barron but shot over the crossbar.
However, the late drama was still to come. UCD never gave up. After some fine build-up play, Darren Meenan played in Graham Rusk. The visitor's number nine finished excellently to fire past Gary Rogers low into the corner.
For their spirit and never say die attitude, The Student's deserved a point tonight. Pete Mahon still has a lot of work to do to please the natives judging by tonight's performance by the home team.
St.Patrick's Athletic: Gary Rogers, Derek Pender, Ian Bermingham, Evan McMillan, Brian Shorthall, Anthony Murphy(Daryl Kavanagh 90), Shane Mc Faul, David Mulcahy(Paul Crowley 57), Derek Doyle, Daniel North, Ian Daly(David Mc Millan).
Subs not used: Stephen Bradley, Jordan Keegan, John Flood, Ian Daly.
UCD: Ger Barron, Paul O' Connor, Ciaran Nangle, David O' Connor, Michael Leahy, Paul Corry(Danny Ledwith, 67), Mark Langtry(Samir Belhout, 67), Robbie Creevy, Graham Rusk, Dean Marshall(Robbie Benson, 77), Darren Meenan.
Subs not used: Sean Harding, James Kavanagh, Mark Mc Ginley.
Attendance: 994.
Referee: Paul Tuite.
Extratime.ie Man Of The Match: David O' Connor (UCD).
Seamus Egan has yet to write anything about themselves but click on the bio link to view all past work.
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