West United falter again as city side slip to third in the table

Athenry 2

West United 0

By Mike Rafferty

A combination of good midfield cover, a solid defence and an agile goalkeeper were all part ofthe jigsaw that helped the Premier Division leaders Athenry increase their advantage at the top of the table on Saturday.

Two early strikes settled this contest at Moanbawn, as thereafter Athenry were almost content to soak up all the pressure and despite West United throwing everything at them, there was just no breaking down a home rearguard who have conceded just four goals so far in the campaign.

With Mervue United moving to second position in the table and overtaking West in the process following a midweek win over Salthill Devon, the visitors knew a victory was crucial in order to maintain their own title challenge. In fairness, West were the better side for the majority of the game – or at least they enjoyed the greater amount of possession, but time and again, they were repelled by a home side who certainly have the bit between their teeth at this stage.

The foundation for the home success was laid in the opening quarter as the home side struck twice with some clinical finishing. On six minutes, Colm O’Donovan flicked on a long delivery and Jamie O’Driscoll picked up possession before finishing past Aaron Connolly for a 1-0 advantage.

They doubled their account ten minutes later and on this occasion O’Donovan did all the work himself as he took on and got inside Stephen Dooley before firing home to give the home side a comfort zone at 2-0.

From an Athenry point of view, they were certainly the highlights in the last third of the park, as they appeared to slip into retreat mode thereafter and live on their nerves. To their credit, they survived with a bit to spare  as the visitors just did not appear to have the firepower to take advantage of all their possession.

With Athenry just employing Colm O’Donovan up top, their five man midfield were to play a crucial role in the success. The middle three of Gary Delaney, Jamie O’Driscoll and Joey Byrne were almost content to sit in front of the back four and just repel whatever the City side threw at them. Wide players Alan O’Donovan and Gary Forde, were also working hard as they afforded cover to full backs Gary O’Connell and Michael O’Halloran.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.