UCD 1-1 St Patrick’s Athletic
WHEN ALL IS said and done, St Patrick’s Athletic will look back on tonight as two points very definitely dropped.
This was a game which they dominated from first to last, so much so that you wouldn’t have blamed the UCD lads for asking if they could occasionally have a touch or two themselves.
But a cool head from Samir Belhout and resolute defending from the Students cancelled out Christy Fagan’s ninth league goal and ensured it ended with honours even.
Pat’s have needed some late heroics already this season to get them over the line in games they have clearly dominated. Tonight, the fireworks never came.
They thought they had their winner eight minutes from time when Killian Brennan touched home Daryl Kavanagh’s flick, only to be denied by a late, late flag from the assistant.
One way or another, the replays will make for interesting viewing.
It was Pat’s second disallowed goal on the night. They had the ball in Conor O’Donnell’s net as early as the third minute. Chris Forrester’s customary trickery helped him past Gareth Matthews but when his cross was bundled home by Fagan, referee Graham Kelly chalked it off for a handball in the build-up.
Pat’s opener came seven minutes later and again, it was Forrester and Fagan who linked to such devastating effect, Forrester slipping the ball through for the Saints’ leading man to fire through O’Donnell’s legs.
It was all one-way traffic at that stage as Pat’s dominated, conducted by the imperious Keith Fahey from his deep vantage point.
UCD, anchored by their central pairing of Hugh Douglas and James Kavanagh, batted the attacks away though their every attempt to move the ball out from the back was quickly shut down once they hit midfield.
But for all their dominance Pat’s were caught short at the back and when Thomas O’Halloran swept the ball forward to Belhout in the 27th minute, he held his nerve to stroke it past Brendan Clarke.
It was completely against the run of play and took the wind out of Pat’s sails. They lost a little bit of their adventure and Liam Buckley’s half-time team talk was needed for a timely jolt.
After the restart they camped again in UCD’s half and flooded forward, Conor McCormack and Ian Bermingham adding some much needed width to the attacks.
But the clearest chance they could muster was a Fagan header which he got underneath when more power and precision was needed.
His goals have carried Pat’s through some trying times, not least when he popped up with a 91st-minute winner in these sides’ last meeting in Inchicore.
The space opened up in front of him on one occasion and he tried his luck from all of 30 yards, but it flew just over O’Donnell’s bar.
It was his last real action as Buckley swapped out himself and Conan Byrne for Brennan and Kavanagh in the final quarter.
They thought they had made the breakthrough when Kavanagh touched on Bermingham’s teasing cross and Brennan arrived at the back post to poke it home from a yard out. The celebrations were already in full flow before the assistant raised a late, late flag.
Brennan was very nearly the hero again but a superbly-struck free dipped just over from 30 yards.
And though Pat’s kept asking questions, the Students had all the answers.
UCD: O’Donnell, Matthews, Douglas, Kavanagh, Langtry, Creevy, Mulhall, Crowe (Burke 51), Benson (c), O’Halloran (Barker 73), Belhout.
Subs: Barron, Scott, McCabe, Ryan, Burke, Barker, Wilson.
ST PAT’S: Clarke, McCormack, O’Brien (c), Browne, Bermingham, Lynch (Quigley 82), Fahey, Chambers, Byrne (Brennan 65), Forrester, Fagan (Kavanagh 71).
Subs: Gilmartin, Fitzgerald, Hoare, Brennan, Bolger, Kavanagh, Quigley.
Referee: Graham Kelly.
