Match Preview – St. Patrick’s Athletic vs Galway United

24 May 2024; Galway United manager John Caulfield during the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between Galway United and Dundalk at Eamonn Deacy Park in Galway. Photo by Michael P Ryan/Sportsfile

John Caulfield stated he’s looking forward to the game and particularly seeing the fans “Our supporters have been fantastic, the atmosphere at home and away from home, we’ve brought a really strong travelling group with us and they can see that the lads are giving everything on the pitch” we spoke to Galway Bay FM ahead of our game against St. Patrick’s Athletic which you can listen to in full below:

As St. Patrick’s Athletic have recently announced the signing of Stephen Kenny as their manager, we will see a classic managerial rivalry come to fruition again as Caulfield and Kenny go head to head in Inchicore on Friday. Caulfield of course had this rivalry with Kenny in the mid/late 2010’s as he managed a very successful Cork City side and Kenny was managing an also very successful Dundalk side. They went head to head on many occasion in the league and cup competitions. John shared his thoughts on the clash “Stephen Kenny has come in, I think he is the highest earner in LOI history as a manager, and he was the international manager up to a few months ago. We all know Kenny’s record, and the plans they have with the five and a half year deal, and the money that will be invested into them to achieve success. He’s only taken over there two or three weeks ago, so we know what he does and what he’s done in the past, so it’s a massive challenge to us. We’re really looking forward to it, our form has been good so we’re really looking forward to the game”

6 November 2016; Dundalk manager Stephen Kenny shakes hands with Cork City manager John Caulfield before the Irish Daily Mail FAI Cup Final match between Cork City and Dundalk at Aviva Stadium in Lansdowne Road, Dublin. Photo by David Maher/Sportsfile

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Defender Maurice Nugent’s form has been brilliant recently, and to no surprise to John Caulfield. Nugent has scored in his last three games, against Bohemians, Drogheda United and Dundalk. “Yeah he’s absolutely fantastic, he’s one of the lads who came through the academy. Had a few injuries last year but to be fair he came through and played a big part of the league. This season unfortunately he was injured and missed the opening 5/6 matches, but he’s come in and got his opportunity and got three fantastic goals for us. He’s a whole hearted player, it’s hard to believe in the last three weeks he has three goals. Long may it continue!” Who knows, we may see the next Walshy-esque move up front over the course of the season if he keeps the goalscoring form up!

17 May 2024; Maurice Nugent of Galway United celebrates his side’s third goal scored by Stephen Walsh, not pictured, during the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between Drogheda United and Galway United at Weavers Park in Drogheda, Louth. Photo by Shauna Clinton/Sportsfile

Captain: Joe Redmond. Redmond has been a rock at the back for the Saints over the last few seasons. The 24 year old Dublin native has played 70+ games for St. Pat’s over the last two seasons, and also earned himself a spot in the PFAI Premier Division TOTY in 2022 along with the club’s own POTY. Redmond is a physical centre back with great communication and likes building attacks from the back, so he will certainly be involved on Friday whether it is denying a United attack or helping Pats build out from the back.

10 May 2024; Joe Redmond of St Patrick’s Athletic warms up before the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between Shamrock Rovers and St Patrick’s Athletic at Tallaght Stadium in Dublin. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

Key Player: Chris Forrester. Forrester, has consistently been one of the best midfielders in the league over the last number of years, playing as a box to box midfielder with the ability to drive forward with the ball and create chances from deep aswell. He will always bring a bit of magic to a game, and has done that for St. Pat’s this season too. He won the PFAI POTY award in 2023, seeing himself crowned as the best player in the country that year and deservedly so. Forrester also had spells across the Irish Sea with Peterborough and Aberdeen and now at 31 he has that experience on top of technicality to cause havoc against any team.

24 May 2024; Chris Forrester of St Patrick’s Athletic celebrates after scoring his side’s first goal from a penalty during the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between Bohemians and St Patrick’s Athletic at Dalymount Park in Dublin. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

One To Watch: Ruairi Keating. Former United player Ruairi Keating is a new signing for the Saints after a hugely successful season at Cork City in 2023. He was nominated for the PFAI Premier Division POTY, the award for the best men’s player in the country, but he lost out to his new teammate Chris Forrester. The Mayo native hasn’t quite hit his numbers from last season (13 goals and assists) scoring three goals this season, but he certainly has the quality to turn that around at any stage. He is an exciting player, so certainly one to keep an eye on Friday.

3 May 2024; Ruairi Keating of St Patrick’s Athletic acknowledges supporters after his side’s victory in the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between St Patrick’s Athletic and Drogheda United at Richmond Park in Dublin. Photo by Shauna Clinton/Sportsfile

Caulfield is very wary of the threat that the Saints hold going forward “Yeah the thing is with St. Pat’s is they are very quick in the wide areas. They like to play in the opponents half, our concentration levels need to be high and we need to very disciplined. There will be opportunities for us on the counter to exploit them, we have done that well this season, but it’s a new challenge every game so we go into it with fresh ideas.”

United’s last game was a 2-0 home win over Dundalk, watch the highlights below:

St. Pat’s last game was a 2-2 draw with Bohs, watch the highlights below:

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Richmond Park is one of the most easily accessible away trips there is for United fans in the Premier Division. It is roughly 20 minutes walk from Hueston Station or a quick few stops on the Luas. Check it out on Google Maps below:

1 April 2024; General view inside the stadium before the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between St Patrick’s Athletic and Sligo Rovers at Richmond Park in Dublin. Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile

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