Barron disappointed with tenth defeat

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Following UCD’s 3-1 defeat at home to Saint Patrick’s Athletic, the Students’ goalkeeper Ger Barron expressed his disappointment at their fourth consecutive league defeat.

Despite going a goal down to Derek Doyle’s 11th minute strike, UCD came back into the game through David O’Connor’s equaliser midway through the first half. However the Students failed to maintain their challenge in the second half, and goals from Daryl Kavanagh and Danny North earned St Pats the points and condemned Martin Russell’s side to their tenth defeat of the season.

Speaking exclusively to extratime.ie after the game, Barron pointed to the timing of Kavanagh’s goal in playing the key part in UCD’s downfall. “We came in at half-time and we were looking to get something out of the game. I thought we played well in patches, but just unfortunately, the second goal was a big turning point and they got the third goal to finish it off.”

Barron was one of UCD’s most impressive players on the night, with several first half saves from St Pats striker Danny North particularly catching the eye. However North, the Saints top scorer, eventually did enough to beat the Limerick born keeper from the edge of the penalty area on 81 minutes.

While Barron admitted to enjoying the duel with North, he admitted the saves were worth nothing following the Students’ defeat and urged his teammates to look ahead. “We had a little personal battle going on there, but unfortunately he won tonight. But you know we just have to keep going. We have to keep pushing on and hopefully we can get a few wins under our belt and get the thing back going again.”

While UCD seem destined for a relegation battle with both Drogheda United and Galway United, Barron is looking forward to the upcoming switch from league action to the beginning of UCD’s FAI Cup campaign. According to Barron, the prospect of facing non-league Cherry Orchard will be a “welcome distraction from the league.”

“Without a doubt, we’ll be looking at the FAI Cup and be looking to have a good run in that. This is a big game for us this season so hopefully we’ll take it one step at time, starting with Cherry Orchard on Friday night. We’ll give it our full attention.”