Utd learn plenty of lessons in stalemate with Students

UCD 1

Galway United 1

The signs of ring-rust are still there, but a point away to UCD in the early stages of a campaign which saw a hugely disrupted pre-season is nothing to be sniffed at for Galway United.

Shane Keegan’s new-look side is still finding its feet, with last Friday’s starting XI featuring six players who weren’t at the club last season, and while the game itself wasn’t much of a spectacle, there was plenty in it for United to take positives from, not least a point away to a side that will finish in the top four at the end of the season.

“If I was offered a draw before we came up, I’d have taken it – I think they’ll be challenging, they’ll certainly be top three, so it was a decent point,” Keegan said after the game, when he admitted that poor timekeeping on their own behalf was partly the reason for s sloppy first-half display.

“Part of that poor first-half display was management’s fault. We got here late, we left Galway too late, didn’t allow for the traffic, we got here about 30 minutes before kick-off, and I think that showed in our first half display,” he said.

The home side did dominate the opening exchanges as United looked off the pace, but once they warmed to their task, they worked their way into the game and took the lead midway through the half.

United were awarded a free-kick wide on the left in the 22nd minute, and Ryan Connolly had the presence of mind to roll a quick one down the channel to Stephen Kenny. The winger took a touch before playing a precision ball across the box, and Danny Furlong was on hand to fire home first time for his fourth goal in two games for United.

If United are to challenge for promotion, then Furlong will be their key player. He hit 30 goals for Wexford Youths as they stormed to the First Division title in 2015, and if he continues as he has started, he is a certainty to become just the third United player to hit 20 or more goals in a season.

The only two to have previously achieved that were Paul McGee (20 goals in Premier Division 1987/88) and Alan Murphy (21 in First Division in 2003), and both players came to mind on Friday night for a different reason.

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