Waweru gives United ideal lift for the promotion battle

Bray Wanderers 0

A Wilson Waweru goal eight minutes from time on Friday night saw Galway United secure the runners-up spot in the division, the top seeding in the play-offs, but most importantly of all, a massive psychological lift ahead of those play-off semi-finals next week.

The game looks to have been a dry run for those play-offs, as Bray are likely to provide the opposition for that two-legged semi-final next Wednesday and Sunday, and United’s first home win in five years over the Wicklow outfit could not have come at a better time.

The only goal of the game came in the 82nd minute and was reward for Waweru’s refusal to give up the ghost in a match in which he could have had a hat-trick in the first-half alone, only for his scoring touch to completely desert him.

On the defensive for much of the game, it was when Bray were enjoying their most dominant spell that they conceded. Conor McCormack broke-up an attack through the middle and lofted a ball over the top for Waweru.

Aaron Barry back-pedalled and Brian Maher came off his line, but Waweru beat both of them to it before rounding Maher and firing into the unguarded net for a goal that rewarded his perseverance, and just might inject a little bit of self confidence back into the player ahead of the play-offs.

United made three changes to the side which fell over the line against Wexford the preivous week, with Maurice Nugent suspended, Conor O’Keeffe injured, and Shane Doherty dropped to the bench.

In came Joe Gorman, Alex Murphy, and Mikie Rowe against a Bray side that was forced into a last-minute change, with Daniel Jones breaking down in the prematch warm-up, resulting in Conor Clifford, a midfielder who spent time on the books of both Chelsea and Leicester City in the last decade, being promoted from the bench,

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

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