FAI Cup Preview: UCD -v- Galway United
- Macdara Ferris
- Mon, Aug 21 2023
UCD
The weather gods were maybe favourable to UCD on Friday night in their second round FAI Cup tie against Galway United.
Trailing 2-0 at the break, with the puddles up the middle of the pitch getting larger and larger and the heavy rain from Storm Betty not easing up, referee Rob Harvey abandoned the game at half time.
It means Andy Myler's men get a second chance against United on Monday night (kick-off 7.45pm) when they take on a team who they knocked out of the cup at the same stage of the competition last year after winning 3-2 in Galway thanks to a winner three minutes from time.
UCD haven’t won in the league since a 2-1 win over Sligo Rovers in June but come into this cup clash on the back of a 1-1 draw away to Cork City – the first time they avoided defeat in the league for five games.
Andy Myler’s men earned a place in the second round of the FAI Cup with a 3-2 home win over Cobh Ramblers last month.
Trailing 1-0 in the game, Jack Kearney scored a brace before half-time, with Daniel Norr scoring just after the hour mark. Dean Larkin’s goal for Cobh made it a nerevous end to the game.
GALWAY UNITED
John Caulfield’s side will be looking for more of the same on Monday night when they head back to Belfield to take on UCD in the re-fixed cup clash.
The United boss was sanguine enough about the match abandonment on Friday when speaking to extratime.com after the teams didn’t get a chance to play the second half.
“I think to be fair to the ref he said 'We'll start and we will see how we get on',” said Caulfield. “At half time they would reassess it if it kept raining.”
With the rain not abatting and conditions worseneing, Rob Harvey called time early on the cup tie.
“It was a 50/50 call on it. It is disappointing for us as we were 2-0 up with 45 minutes to go. We have to go home and come back up on Monday.”
United had taken the lead in the 16th minute as Ed McCarthy’s touch took the ball into the net after good work from Rob Manning and Manning doubled the lead on 34 minutes with a fine finish from a run from deep.
Referee: Rob Harvey
MATCH STATS
UCD and Galway United have won the FAI Cup once each. On both occasions they have done so by beating Shamrock Rovers in the final – UCD in 1983 (2-1 in a replay) and United in 1991 (1-0 win).
United haven’t lost a game since May Day when they lost 1-0 away to Longford Town since then in the league they have won 11 matches and drawn four.
David Hurley is the top scorer for Galway United this season with 16 league goals and Stephen Walsh also is in double digits with ten goals.
PREDICTION
2 - 0 away win
Macdara Ferris is a contributor since 2007 to Hoops Scene (Shamrock Rovers' match day programme) and is the co-author of two books on Shamrock Rovers - 'Tallaght Time: Shamrock Rovers 2009 to 2012' (with Karl …
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