Jake Keegan - We need to push on

On Friday evening, Galway FC travel to Tolka Park for a huge second-leg play-off match against Shelbourne, and Jake Keegan, their top league scorer with 14 strikes, is keen his side can complete the job if they stick to their guns.

Holding a 2-0 lead after their morale-boosting victory at home in Eamonn Deacy Park thanks to goals from Ryan Connolly and Gary Shanahan, as well as a spirited overall team performance, Tommy Dunne's men are in pole position to finish The Reds off.

Reflecting back on the referee's decision to only award Shelbourne custodian Nathan Murphy a yellow card after cutting down Gary Shanahan inside the box mid-way through the first half, Keegan was understandably coy when he spoke withExtratime.ie during the week.

“I don't want to get into any trouble here, but I wouldn't say I necessarily agreed with it! But obviously, I mean everybody has their own interpretations of what goes on. Being early in the match probably played a bit into it as well.

“But I know they did have a defender kind of covering – I don't know if he was behind the 'keeper, but he was close enough so maybe that also played into it.”

Of course, it wasn't just strange officiating that helped them secure the result they wanted, but some solid defending and attacking that meant the Galwegians were on top for the majority. Reducing Johnny McDonnell's men to shots from distance, they wrapped it up with a perfectly-timed strike to kill the game off late. And Keegan was instrumental with his movement and work-rate, unlucky not to come away with a goal himself.

But that game has come and gone, and Keegan and the rest of the squad are now naturally focused on Friday night's challenge. And the 24-year-old American striker is most certainly relishing the occasion and all it embodies.

“I mean it should be a great atmosphere up in Shelbourne. Probably similar enough to the one in Galway the past week. So, it should be a great atmosphere and we're just looking to go down there and play our game.

“Like, we can't just sit in and hope they don't score – we need to push on and try to build our lead even more.”

It's clear he's excited for the game. All the fans are ecstatic that the team have done so well. Around the town of Galway, there's a great buzz, especially with news that Galway United is no longer just a chant emanating from the stands – it's a reality once more. But the former FC Darmstadt man is also concentrated on making sure they get the job done, and he knows exactly what they have to do.

“Like I said before, obviously you wouldn't be cavalier, like going for goals or anything like that, but you do need to approach it in the similar manner that we have all season.

“The way we play, the way we keep the ball on the ground, the way we move – it's worked for us so far, so it just wouldn't be very smart to switch things up now.

“We're not going to go into a defensive shell or anything like that. Obviously if the match wears on and the score stays the same, we can play differently. But from the start I would say to attack the game as you would any other.”

Galway and Shelbourne's vital second-leg play-off match gets underway at a slightly later kick-off time of 8.00 pm on Friday, and it promises to be a cracking contest between two motivated sides.