Athenry eager to make home advantage pay in Junior Cup

By Mike Rafferty

WHEN the local soccer season kicked off last August, Athenry might have made a slow start to their Premier League campaign with two losses against fellow title contenders in their opening three games.

However since then they are on a long unbeaten run as they have progressed to the latter stages of the FAI Junior Cup and Connacht Cup. They were also chasing League honours before the season was declared null and void by the Galway FA due to the Covid crisis.

Cup action will see them in action over the next two weekends, with Rush Athletic the visitors on Saturday (2pm), when they face the Dublin side in the last eight of the FAI Cup, while the following weekend, Castlebar Celtic will arrive in Moanbawn for Connacht Cup action.

To date in the FAI Junior Cup, Athenry have moved through six rounds of the competition with various degrees of simplicity and difficulty. Without a doubt their most dramatic encounter came at the last 32 stage when they found themselves three down at the break away to Mayo side Manulla. However, with a spirit that typifies the side they could even afford the luxury of a missed penalty as they eventually levelled matters at 4-4, before Cathal Fahy struck for the matchwinner.

The long serving Fahy proved to be the hero on three different occasions, for in addition to his Manulla finish, he also contributed late goals in their wins over Renmore in the opening round and against Crumlin in their last outing as they came from behind to see off the Dublin visitors in a last 16 tie in Drom.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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