UCD 2-0 Wexford Youths FC

Mick Wallace was disappointed. He paid tribute to the quality of this young UCD side - “the nicest team in the League” he called them - but said his lads let them play. “We were better in the second half,” he added, “When we applied ourselves as we did when winning at the Bowl earlier in the season.”

I saw it a little differently. To my mind, UCD in this form are unstoppable at this level and no amount of commitment by the Youths team was likely to prevent them strutting their stuff. True Mick’s men came back to achieve a scoreless second period but by then the Students had the points and could have added to their two goal cushion, David McMillan missing two good close range chances.

Wexford opened brightly enough and a determined run by Conor Sinnott down the right won the first corner of the evening.   But signs of UCD’s class were soon evident. Mulhall fed McMahon who turned his marker inside out with the drop of a shoulder to bear in on goal only to put the ball narrowly past the post. Then a Paul Corry free kick displayed a slick training ground routine to open up the visitors defence only for the final pass to go astray. The relevant fact is that no Youths player got a touch in either of these pieces of action.

Packie Holden certainly got a feel of the ball after 21 minutes, fisting Paul Corry fierce long range drive over the bar. The resulting set play was Youths undoing, Corry heading home Finn’s corner at the near post.

Gary Sheahan gave hope of an immediate response, bursting between UCD’s central defenders on one of those fast runs that have become his trademark. This time his shot was just the wrong side of Barron’s left post and it was only the side netting that rippled.  

UCD secured victory in the 35th minute with a great goal. McMahon gave a precision pass to Mulhall who skinned McCurtin and filleted the rest of the Wexford defence with a ball across goal which Kilduff turned home. Passing football of the highest quality.   Two minutes later the UCD striker could have added a third, beating White in the air but heading narrowly wide.

That third goal could have come in the second minute of the second half when referee Graham Kelly was too quick to whistle for a foul. Kilduff put the resulting through ball into the Wexford net though doubtless Packie Holden would have had an involvement if the whistle had not sounded.

The second period was certainly more even, with Sinnott’s presence switched to bolster up a midfield that had looked in danger of being over run. There was no doubting Youths commitment. I recall crunching tackles by McCurtin and another from Anto Russell, slightly mistimed, that earned the Wexford defender a yellow card.

You have to credit the Wexford revival. It stopped UCD and prevented what otherwise could have been a substantial defeat.   The real problem for Youths was retaining possession. Warren Broaders attempted to get back to the passing game when he replaced Aust after 58 minutes but generally a stretched defence simply returned the ball to the opposition. This was the first time I have seen Youths normally commanding central defenders Breen and White so insecure with both losing a number of contested headers.

There was no doubt about the man of this match, UCD’s Paul Corry, who lined up as a holding midfielder in front of the back four, bossed the midfield and still found time to pop up to score the first goal and prove as threatening as any UCD attacker. How Burnley allowed this talented youngster to escape is beyond me but there will be plenty of takers for his services on this form.

So the game drew to an inevitable conclusion with Ritchie Fitzgerald getting a token seven minutes in his final appearance before departing for Australia. With Shels and Sporting sharing the spoils and Waterford losing, UCD seemed to have timed their run for promotion perfectly. They go two points clear although Shelbourne still have what could prove to be a vital game in hand.   Monaghan’s win at the RSC takes them above Youths on goal difference to deprive them of a fifth position that had seemed to be there for the taking for so much of the season. Finn Harps come to Ferrycarrig on Friday fresh from a sensational six-nil victory over an Athlone Town side to whom Youths lost recently. Harps have looked fragile at times this season and Youths have beaten them twice so it looks likely to be an interesting encounter.

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