Injury-time goal denies Galway United win away to Derry
Lomboto’s first-half goal looked to have been enough to clinch all three points
Galway United were four minutes away from a hard-fought win away to Derry on Monday night, only for the home side to find an equaliser in injury time as the sides had to settle for a 1-1 draw.
Having benefitted from an injury-time equaliser to snatch a 2-2 draw at home to St Patrick’s Athletic on Friday night, this time it was the Tribesmen’s turn to feel the agony of two late dropped points.
Francely Lomoboto had edged United in front a minute before half-time with a goal that could yet go down as an OG against James Clarke; and while the home side dominated possession in the second-half, they huffed and puffed and rarely tested the visitors who looked like holding on for the win.
However, Kevin Dos Santos came off the bench in the 87th minute, and with his first meaningful action in the first of five minutes of injury-time, the Portuguese man jinked past two United tackles to fire home an equaliser.
Given the late afternoon kick-off, and the lengthy journey from Galway to Derry, United made the trip to the north-west 24 hours in advance, heading up the N17 on Sunday.
The game was played in Celtic Park, the home of Derry GAA, as the playing surface at Derry City's Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium just down the Lone Moor Road is being re-laid, and history will be made next month when the sides meet again in Galway.
That game, scheduled for Friday June 19 in Eamonn Deacy Park, is set to be moved back 24 hours, and moved to Pearse Stadium in Salthill when the Dyke Road ground undergoes its own resurfacing work, meaning that for the first time, two League of Ireland clubs will meet each other at different GAA grounds in the same season.
United manager John Caulfield said after Friday night’s draw that he would be making a number of changes for Monday's game, and when the teams were announced, he was as good as his word, with changes to half of his outfield players.
Wasiri Williams and Lee Devitt came into the defence; Jimmy Keohane started in midfield; while there was a new two-prong attack of Lomboto and Frantz Pierrot. Al-Amin Kazeem, Ed McCarthy, Mattie Wolfe, Kris Twardek, and Stephen Walsh were the ones to make way.
The first-half was largely a forgettable affair, only sparking to life in the final five minutes or so. Both sides had a couple of half-chances that didn't test either goalkeeper until United’s Evan Watts was called in to action in the 41st minute.
Darragh Markey picked up possession on the left and played a ball inside for Clarke, whose first touch saw the ball spin up in the air. The Derry man stayed composed, swivelling and hitting the ball as it dropped back down, but Watts threw himself across his goal-line to claw the ball away from the top-corner.
City goalkeeper Ed Beach was smartly off his line in the 36th minute to smother at the feet of Lomboto, who had found his way in on the right, but the United man came out on top of the next showdown between the two, albeit with a slight stroke of luck.
Killian Brouder and Dave Hurley played a neat one-two tight to the right touchline in the 44th minute, with the former breaking clear to flick the ball into the box, where Friday night's two-goal hero, Aaron Bolger, was on hand to head the ball on.
Lomboto got up in front of Clarke to try a back-header, and while his touch was minimal, it was enough to deflect the ball on to the shoulder of Clarke and ricochet past Beach and inside the near post.
It was the perfect half-time boost for United, and Lomboto should have doubled his side's lead three minutes after the restart when a flick of Pierrot's boot played the ball into his path.
Lomboto raced past Paddy McClean, getting into the box before shooting centrally from 12 yards, but his effort was weak and straight at Beach, Lomboto showing his frustration by punching the ground.
Dipo fired a 25-yard City free-kick into the United defensive wall in the 52nd minute, his last meaningful action as Derry manager Tiarnan Lynch made a couple of changes, with Michael Duffy returning from injury to make his first appearance in seven games; with Josh Thomas also introduced.
United reacted by withdrawing both Lomboto and Pierrot, with Walsh coming on to play a lone frontman role, while Conor McCormack was introduced to help shore-up the midfield.
In between those brace of changes, the home side did have the ball in the net, Paddy McClean heading home after City took a quick corner-kick, but the goal was rightly ruled out for a foul, with McClean using Devitt as a ladder to try and reach the ball.
United suffered a blow in the 66th minute when Gianfranco Facchinieri was forced off with what looked like an ankle injury, but United were coping with everything the home side was throwing at them which, to be honest, wasn't very much.
A couple of tame headers at Watts, a few more sent over the crossbar, but United were untroubled and as fourth official Rob Dowling lifted the board to show five minutes of injury-time, some City fans started to head for the exits.
They came rushing back 60 seconds later when James Olayinka found Dos Santos on the edge of the United penalty area on the left
The substitute, introduced just three minutes later, turned past Wolfe with his first touch and twisted past Williams with his second, before curling a delightful effort around Watts and inside his left post.
Derry City: Beach; Dummigan (Rylah 75), Stott, McClean; Cotter, Winchester (Duffy 57), Olayinka, Doherty; Clarke; Dipo (Thomas 57), Markey (Dos Santos 87).
Galway United: Watts; Williams, Facchinieri (inj, McCarthy 68), Brouder; Devitt, Keohane (Wolfe 88), Bolger (Piesold 68), Devitt; Hurley; Lomboto (McCormack 62), Pierrot (Walsh 62).
Referee: Alan Patchell (Dublin).