Waterford United 3 - 1 Limerick FC

Willie John Kiely netted a brace and Sean Maguire tucked home a coolly-taken finish to give Waterford United an unlikely three points against Limerick FC at the RSC on Friday night.

The visitors had equalised in the second-half through Shane Guthrie, but the introduction of youth team sensation Maguire was enough to tip the balance in favour of the Suirsiders.

Neither side began the game with any real authority, though Limerick’s wing play was causing their hosts numerous problems early on. Derek O’Brien in particular was a constant threat with his ability to beat his man and deliver a dangerous cross.

The opening chance of the game fell to the away side, with Denis Behan almost producing a piece of magic. The forward lined up a 25-yard free-kick like he meant business, before thundering his effort just wide of Packie Holden’s far post.

Waterford had clearly entered this game with a plan to sit deep, regularly getting ten men behind the ball and then looking to counter quickly to catch the Limerick defence unaware. On 22 minutes, Paul O’Brien’s tactics were vindicated as Paul Phelan escaped down the right flank before cutting infield and curling a near-post cross for Ben Ryan, whose failure to connect allowed Willie John Kiely to poke the ball onto the crossbar and in.

Limerick appeared to be slightly rattled by the concession of that goal and, coupled with Waterford’s growing confidence, the game developed into a very even affair. Though neither team could quite take command of the game, the visitors did create the more clear-cut chances and should have scored at least one of those.

Late in the first half, Pat Purcell powered a header wide from a great position and just before the break another gilt-edged opportunity came and went for the away side. A floated corner from the right was met by Behan, but Holden managed to get a strong hand to his header before Paul Carey blocked Behan’s second attempt on the line with his chest , Holden finally pouncing on the loose ball.

The second-half saw the home side retreat deeper and deeper and Limerick really began to turn the screw, finding themselves thwarted only by last-ditch flicks or blocks from Waterford defenders. The equalising goal did come, however, and it had begun to feel inevitable that it would. Waterford conceded a free-kick on the left touchline and Limerick centre-half Shane Guthrie rose brilliantly to glance a deft header beyond Holden and bring his team back into the game with 20 minutes to go.

Limerick looked to push on from that goal and find a winner in the last quarter of the game, committing numbers forward and really pressuring the Waterford back-line. So it was a surprise when Blues boss O’Brien elected to replace a midfielder, Peter Higgins, with exciting young forward Sean Maguire. Once again however, the manager’s decision proved astute as Gary Dempsey’s well-weighted through-ball sent Maguire clean through on 80 minutes. His first two touches in the game saw Maguire round Barry Ryan and roll the ball home from an acute angle to send the home crowd into pandemonium.

Limerick ploughed forward in the final ten minutes and came close to a second equaliser on a couple of occasions, though Waterford’s continued counter-attacking saw them carve out a chance or two of their own in the dying stages of the game. In the end it was indeed the home side who found the game’s final goal, as Kiely ended another break with a prodded finish beyond Ryan and secured an excellent, and unlikely, win for Waterford.

Waterford United: Packie Holden; Paul Carey, Dylan Mernagh, Craig Burns, Seamus Long; Paul Phelan, Gary Dempsey, Gary Dunphy, Peter Higgins (Sean Maguire 78), Ben Ryan; Willie John Kiely (Peter Keegan 93).
Subs not used: Thomas Whitty, Conor Coad, Jamie Cross, Jack Doherty, Robert Hughes.

Bookings: Carey (26).

Limerick FC: Barry Ryan; Corie Treacy, Pat Purcell, Shane Guthrie, Andrew Bhandarkar; Joe Gamble, Stephen Bradley (Stephen McGann 45), Rory Gaffney; Paudie Quinn (Dominic Foley 51), Denis Behan (Gary Sheahan 66), Derek O’Brien.
Subs not used: David O’Leary, Dave Ryan, Alex Scully, Shane Tracy.
Bookings: C Treacy (31), Foley (62).

Referee: Sean Grant.
Attendance: 463
Extratime.ie Man of the Match: Willie John Kiely – Provided an outlet for his side all night and was clinical when it counted to bag two goals.