Keegan’s charges aiming to build on cracking result against league leaders

LAST weekend’s thoroughly deserved draw with Cork City won’t really count for much if Galway United don’t strike the perfect chord and record just a second league win of the season when they host Finn Harps in Eamonn Deacy Park this Friday night (7.45pm).

Shane Keegan’s side were fully deserving of a point against the runaway league leaders, and there would have been little argument from anyone had they gone on to win the game, but while that could be regarded as a ‘bonus point’, they have to push on and take three crucial points against Ollie Horgan’s side this weekend.

“That’s the first thing Colm Horgan) said, we have to go on now and beat Finn Harps,” said Galway United midfielder, Alex Byrne, after last Friday’s game.

“It is all well and good to stop Cork City getting 13 wins on the bounce, to get a point off the league leaders, but we need to make that count in the next game against Harps, and the following home game against Bohs the following Friday.

“Those are two teams we are looking to finish ahead of this season, they are two big ones for us. That was I suppose some defensive display against Cork – well, more so in the second half than the first – but next week we expect Finn Harps will come down and put in that kind of shift against us.

“They are going to say ‘let’s get away from here with a point’, we are looking to win the game, looking to create more chances in the Harps game than we did tonight,” Byrne said.

The creation – and taking – of chances has been United’s problem this season – only one team (Bohemians) has scored fewer than the 11 league goals United have registered, but after an early season wobble defensively, the Tribesmen seem to have got things right at the back.

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