Murphy’s the man as Utd bid to end poor run of form

HE may have gone from poacher to gamekeeper, but new Galway United manager, Alan Murphy, says his transition from player to boss won’t cause any difficulty with the players.

Speaking on his way back from Dublin after attending the FAI Cup draw on Wednesday afternoon, Murphy says he has told his players that they have nine games left this season to prove a point, both to themselves and to supporters.

“I’ve met the players and told them it is what it is, they know they have a job to do, and they have to get on with that job.

“The performances in the last five or six games simply haven’t been good enough, and we need to change that. We can still make the play-offs – if we win this weekend, we’ll make ground on someone above us because of the way the fixtures fall, and it will give us a lift for the next game,” says Murphy.

United host Athlone Town, on Friday (7.45pm), on the same night that table toppers UCD host third-placed Shelbourne, while second-placed Drogheda United host 5th-placed Finn Harps. United are six points outside the play-offs, but Murphy says a top-four finish is still achievable.

The Ballinrobe native – who became United’s all-time leading league scorer this season – says he will look for a change in fortunes through a combination of a new approach and new faces, but admits that, in order to bring in a player, he will firstly have to release one.

“That’s my brief, the budget is tight so we’ll have to release players if we want to sign anyone,” he says, adding that he and his new assistant manager, Mark Herrick, are looking for a particular kind of player.

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