Molloy is ruled out for Mervue’s vital final league fixture

ALTHOUGH they have no injury concerns, Mervue United will be without suspended striker Jason Molloy for their crucial Airtricity First Division game away to Wexford Youths on Saturday evening (7:45pm).

Down to the final First Division fixture of the season, a win for fourth-placed Mervue could secure them a place in the promotion play-offs – but only if Longford Town or Waterford United, both of which lie just a point ahead in the table, fail to secure a victory themselves.

Mervue boss Johnny Glynn believes, come Saturday night, his side will be in the play-offs, although he is taking nothing for granted. “We are looking forward to it,” he says. “We have to win it but we had to win the last five games as well to get into this position.

“I suppose, the run started off against Salthill Devon and, although that was a convincing 1-0 victory, if Salthill had got an equaliser, we would probably be out of the running [for the play-offs]. I knew we would have to win five of our last six games and, if we did, I thought we would be in the play-offs because I believed Wexford and Longford would drop a few more points.

“However, they haven’t dropped as many as I thought and it has been a very competitive finish to the season. In some respects, it is better that we have to go to Wexford to get the win because I would rather be doing that than going down there looking for a draw. As I said, we had to win our last five games and this is no different.”

What has been remarkable about Mervue’s recent run has been the five consecutive clean sheets they have kept in the lead-in to this season’s exciting finale. Another on Saturday night would go a long way to securing the three points required. “That (clean sheets) has been down to the team as a whole, not just our defence,” says Glynn.

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