FAI Cup quarter-final (AET): St Patrick’s Athletic 3 (Mulraney 83, Forrester 105+1, Garick 114) Galway United 1 (Hurley 90)
Chris Forrester worked the oracle yet again for St Patrick’s Athletic with a delightful free kick goal to help put them into the semi-final of the FAI Cup in a slow burner of a last-eight tie at Richmond Park.
Forrester then provided the assist for recent signing Jordan Garrick to add the gloss with a well taken third goal, his first for the club.
The result was harsh on a gallant Galway United, who came to play and were the better side for good stretches of a game that laboured to come to life.
It’s the eighth season in a row that Galway have lost to a Dublin side in the cup as St Pat’s, winners in 2021 and 2023, look forward to a third semi-final in five years.
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Following the draw on Sunday night, Stephen Kenny’s side will now travel to meet Cork City in the last four on the week ending October 5th. First Division Kerry FC’s reward for their dramatic win over Sligo Rovers is a visit to Shamrock Rovers.
At Richmond Park, a dour opening meant it was half an hour before the game eventually sprung to life, Brandon Kavanagh’s shot on the turn deflected over for a St Pat’s corner after good work by Jake Mulraney and Mason Melia.
United ’keeper Brendan Clarke, a cup winner with St Pat’s in 2014, then tipped a Kavanagh free kick round a post before the visitors wasted the only clear-cut chance of the half on 34 minutes.
Galway cleared Kavanagh’s corner following Clarke’s save to break with David Hurley.
Dara McGuinness collected Hurley’s square pass to place a first time ball through for the run of Jimmy Keohane. And though Joseph Anang stood up well to save with his feet, Keohane knows he should have scored.
Galway remained the better side into the early stages of the second half as St Pat’s lost right-back Ryan McLaughlin, who had suffered a head cut just before half-time.
He was replaced by Axel Sjoberg while Jay McClelland and Simon Power were also soon introduced as St Pat’s looked to inject more urgency into their play.
Mulraney rifled over the top from a tight angle after Forrester played him in behind on the hour as the game finally began to spark to life.
St Pat’s finished strongly, forcing a series of corners as they chased a breakthrough, which finally arrived on 83 minutes.
Right before that Saints had to survive a real chance for Galway, Anang making his second telling stop of the night from a Patrick Hickey header.
Breaking immediately, Power set up winger Mulraney, who cut past substitute Rob Slevin before drilling across Clarke to the far corner of the net.
Galway refused to lie down and hit back to force extra-time with an equaliser right on 90 minutes.
Forrester’s header out from a Killian Brouder long throw dropped for Hurley, whose crisply struck volley took a deflection to arrow to the net.
Piling on the pressure into stoppage time, St Pat’s couldn’t find a winner, Clarke making a fine tip-over save from a Mulraney free kick to ensure another half-hour of play.
The real drama then arrived in the final minute of the first period of extra-time.
Galway lost Brouder to a straight red card for a last man challenge on Melia as he raced through on to McClelland’s pass.
Forrester stepped up to curl a brilliant free kick over the wall to the net with Clarke rooted to the spot.
The Saints’ talisman then set up Garrick to curl home the third goal on 115 minutes.
St Patrick’s Athletic: Anang; McLaughlin (Sjoberg, 54), Redmond, Turner, Kazeem (McClelland, 58); Lennon, Forrester; Mulraney (Garrick, 100), Kavanagh (Power, 58), Leavy (Robinson, 87); Melia (Carty, 118).
Galway United: Clarke; Esua, Buckley, Brouder, Burns (Slevin, 68); Bolger (McCormack, 67; Piebald, 97), Hurley (Borden, 100); Keohane, Hickey (Walsh, 118), McCarthy (Siri, 80); McGuinness (Shaw, 115).
Referee: Paul McLaughlin (Monaghan).
