United need a win away to St Pat’s to boost hopes of avoiding the drop
HAVING flagged this evening’s Premier Division clash against fellow strugglers St. Patrick’s Athletic at Richmond Park (7:45pm) as a pivotal fixture from a distance out, Galway United boss Shane Keegan admits the outcome of this contest – and, indeed, the next five games – could well “make or break” their season.
Following a not unexpected 2-0 defeat to reigning Premier Division champions Dundalk at Oriel Park on Monday, Galway United and Keegan were more relieved – to have got that game out of the way – than disappointed.
“We made a few changes and we gave it a decent rattle,” begins Keegan. “We probably didn’t cause them as many problems as we would have liked to have but, look, it is done, it is out of the way. The Dundalk game is done and dusted.
“It means we can focus on the next five games now with three of them against teams in the bottom group with us, plus we have a game at home to Limerick which we would see as a winnable one as well. So, this is an absolutely crucial period for us now.”
For with United’s Premier Division survival pretty much hanging by a thread, it is crucial they pick up the points against the side that, up until last weekend, had been hugging the bottom of the table. This is not lost on Keegan.
“There is no doubt about it. The next one is St. Pat’s, game three is against Drogheda and game five is against Finn Harps. They are essentially the games which will make or break our season – not game’s like last Monday night’s one.”
Although a victory over St. Patrick’s Athletic would be a major fillip to the squad, one win alone will be nowhere near enough to ensure their survival and Galway United must – to use another sporting parlance – box clever with their resources over the month of July.
“I suppose, we have probably played more Monday night games than anybody else in the league to be honest with you, but now the schedule we have means we have a weekend free while game five in that schedule is not until August 4.
“What we have said to the lads is that by the time of the final whistle on August 4 we need to be out of the relegation zone, having collected somewhere between eight and 10 points in those five games,” he states.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.