Galway perfect fixture for Drogs to find hot streak
DROGHEDA United boss Tim Clancy’s patience is clearly wearing thin ahead of the club’s huge Division 1 clash at home to Galway United this Friday (7.45pm).
While the manager insists his team are in a better position - second in the table - than they expected to be with five games remaining, he couldn’t hide his frustration after the wasteful Boynesiders coughed up two points against Wexford in Ferrycarrig Park last week despite playing against 10 men for almost 40 minutes.
On the ground where Drogheda scored eight times on their previous visit, the game somehow ended scoreless and Wexford keeper Corey Chambers hardly had a difficult save to make despite Drogheda registering 19 shots at goal.
‘You can’t compete at the top of the league if you’re not finishing the ball off and you go and drop points against Wexford,’ the manager complained.
‘You want to be positive and not really let your frustration get out on the players, but listen, we’ve got to start standing up and showing a bit more balls, shall we say, a bit more composure in the box.
‘We created so many chances there. We were snatching at things and there’s only so long you can say it’s unlucky and move on to the next game. They really have to start looking at how they’re finishing the ball.
‘Doyler’s [Mark Doyle] gone round the keeper and the last defender and he’s got to do better, Gareth’s [McCaffrey] had a header from three yards out, Lee Duffy had a chance from seven yards, Jake [Hyland] had a chance in the first half when he’s taken a touch in the six-yard box and just had to volley it.
‘Jake had another one at the end where he snatched at it and it’s gone to Rob Manley and he’s taken a touch on his knee in the six-yard box when all he had to do is help it in. There was loads of chances we could have easily taken.
‘It’s difficult when a team puts so many bodies across the six-yard box and across the penalty spot when you’re attacking. They were down to 10 men for half an hour, but they defended well.’
Clancy was upset that striker Chris Lyons was booked for going down in the box too easily in the first period, when many in the crowd thought Wexford defender Sean Kelly’s challenge worthy of a penalty kick and a second yellow card. Kelly was eventually dismissed for another ill-timed tackle on Lyons early in the second half.
‘It’s a frustrating one because you score that, the game opens up and it’s a different game, but you can’t blame that. Our finishing was what cost us winning the game,’ Clancy added.
Looking ahead to the visit of Galway, the Drogs have an opportunity to open a ninepoint gap over the pre-season title favourites, with just four further games to play. And with the Tribesmen having the toughest run-in of all the play-off contenders, there’s an argument that they are more in need of all three points than Drogheda.
‘It’s another huge game for us,’ added Clancy, agreeing that the fixture has all the hallmarks of being a thriller.
‘It’s one we need to win as well, so we’ll go at it and hopefully we can get a positive result.
‘There’s five games left and the league is so, so tight that you just have to pick yourself up. We’ll get Wexford out of our system on Monday and go again for Galway.’
Asked about the seven-point gap that has now opened up between Drogheda and leaders UCD, Clancy insisted that was not his concern and hadn’t been since the season kicked off.
‘We’re not looking at all at UCD. I’ve not said it all [that Drogheda were aiming for the title]. We’re only five ahead of fifth place now and I’ve said it all season that the league is very tight. We’re certainly not going to be looking above us. We’ll be looking behind us as we have all season.
‘At the start of the year nobody thought we’d be in this position, so that’s a credit to the players, and we just have to get them back on track now
and hopefully we can get a positive result against Galway.
‘We don’t have the same resources as a lot of teams in our league, to be honest. Our budget is probably fifth or sixth in the league, but our aim this season was to compete in every game and bar UCD where we lost 2-0, that’s the only game where I feel we were second best.
‘That’s a positive and we’ll go into Friday with the same mindframe that we can get something out of it.’ •Drogheda United will host Shamrock Rovers in the National Under-15 Cup second round on the weekend of August 18th/19th, with the winners at home to either Finn Harps or UCD in the quarter-finals the following week.