Athlone V United

[GuisaSaigon]

Match preview here http://www.galwayunitedfc.ie/match-previews/teamnews-athlone-town-v-galway-united-6.html
you can also fork out €850 to watch some English crap, or you can spend around €50 and make your way to Dubarry park this friday!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Trainee]

Most important 90 Mins of the season anything less than a win our season is over

It will be intersting to see our team tomorrow with our injuries

my team whould be:

Goughie

Reilly, keady, Carter, Cretaro,

O Brien, Foley, Russel, Cookie,

O Dowd, Gethins,

[GuisaSaigon]

I'd agree with that Trainee, Wes has been playing while injured for a few weeks and shouldn't be risked again if hes not fit. Russell deserves his shot he was great in Limerick and he has been going well in the u 21s.
Gethins shoulnt have been dropped last week and Murphy hasn't given any indication that he can return to his previous form.
Hopefully Billy will recover in time.
We have to win every game draws are useless, I look forward to seeing an attack minded United team taking to the field for the rest of the season.

[Trainee]

Billy wont be playing I heard he is out for rest of season with a dislocated shoulder and Wes will struggle to play again this season with his hamstring
Frawley maybe back next week

[corbyeire]

this injury crisis may just bring the best out of them - hopefullly!!!

[Conor H]

In the 2 games we've lost to Athlone this year they've scored in the 81st and 90th minute.
They also scored in the 86th minute in Terryland to equalise in the last league match.
It's vital we keep our concentration tomorrow.We are better than Athlone and we most show it once and for all in Dubarry Park.As the Cian O Connell said in the Advertiser this game will be robbed of the crowd from Galway we would have brought if it wasn't for the Ozzie Rules.It's up to all of us travelling to show the lads that we're 100% behind them.Lets roar them to victory!

[eamo1]

to have some versitile players like fran who can fill in to a number of positions.it will work out well if he can fit in at centre back and then we can bring russel into the team.fran hasnt played there consistently in a long time but athlone have limited attacking power(1 of lowest amount of goals scored in the league).but bogey teams need to be paid alot of attention to,we are kinda harps bogey team and thats probably a reason we escaped with a win there a couple of weeks ago so ppl expecting an easy win will be in for a shock.i wonder how it will look on t.v and what ratings will be with that other thing on at the same time.

[exiled_gufc_fan]

Looking good so far!

Alan Gough
Mick O'Donnell; Wes Charles; Nigel Keady; Raf Cretaro
Derek O'Brien; Fran Carter; Ciaran Foley; David Cooke
Conor Gethins; David O'Dowd

2-Nil, just gone half-time. Penalty from Conor Gethins (23 mins) :ball: and goal from Derek O'Brien :ball: after goalkeeper could only parry Fran Carter's effort.

Fans looking and sounding great on the web stream! Flare looked great earlier. Tried a screen grab but it stream came out as a black square :(

Way we are playing we should get a couple more.

[exiled_gufc_fan]

Looking good so far!

Alan Gough
Mick O'Donnell; Wes Charles; Nigel Keady; Raf Cretaro
Derek O'Brien; Fran Carter; Ciaran Foley; David Cooke
Conor Gethins; David O'Dowd

2-Nil, just gone half-time. Penalty from Conor Gethins (23 mins) :ball: and goal from Derek O'Brien :ball: after goalkeeper could only parry Fran Carter's effort.

Fans looking and sounding great on the web stream! Flare looked great earlier. Tried a screen grab but it stream came out as a black square :(

Way we are playing we should get a couple more.

Three more! Hat trick for Gethins. He should have had 5 or 6!

O'Connor: "I thought we were terrible" - about right. "They overran us".

[exiled_gufc_fan]

Gethins:

"We need to win every one of them to win the league"

"It was a great shot from Dowdy so it was and I saw the keeper down so I just chipped it over him"

"I could just see him off his line so I just thought I'd hit him again"

Cousins:

"We're looking at the goal difference so we just thought we'd get as many as we could"

"It was a great team performance ... We're moving in the right direction in the long term as well".

"The bottom line is we can only do what we can do on the pitch."

"I'm a football manager not a diplomat"

[exiled_gufc_fan]

... fairly predictably went to Gethins. But the team overall worked hard and it was great to see them keep going and trying to boost the goal difference!

[eamo1]

beat athlone like that,in theory we should do it in a few games against them when you compare team sheets and squads,resoruces available etc but we dont.i realise as the athlone manager said it was real "end of season" stuff for them and when the third goal went in their heads dropped understandably.
goal difference is gonna be crucial i feel,theres no reason why we cant put a few past kildare too as their season is also over and they might drop their heads if we get a couple of quick goals.
but job done tonight and you can only beat whats in front of you and fair play to lads because they did that and more.
F.A.O BOARD MEMBERS:CAN WE PLEASE KEEP CONOR GETHINS???????
what happened near the end?a few kids throwing stones was it?looked like they were all waiting for ye down one end,looked dodgy but maybe nothing happened,hopefully.

[Tribalhooie]

it all started when 2 little slappers from athlone hit one of our girls. in fairness the "mad as cootes" lads were appologising to us after the game. fair play to them. bounty bar was good craic. shame two idiots ruined a good nite for all involved. good luck anyway in your new stadium lads.

[Battery Rover]

shame two idiots ruined a good nite for all involved.

Spoke to some of the committee last night after the game and between them and the Cootes we are going to go through the TV footage and indentify these and believe me they will never see a game of football involving Athlone again.

Well done on the result as you say you can only beat what is put in front of you and you did that well.

Nice to meet some of the people on the forum. Even magicme travelled to Athlone to get her football fix.

[Terry]

HI Battery Rover,

When going through the survaliance check out the gufc supporters and athlone stewards asking the gardai for some protection! I asked and they said "dont worry" and a steward asked for assistance and they told him " cant you do it yourself" and they then walked away !! It all really kicked off then when 3 lads (aged 18-20) came up behind us and through a lit firework into the middle of us, exploding 3 feet behind my wifes head. I decided then that it was to dangerous to stay around and left as they had gathered around my car in the car park after they ran down to that end. They were kicking the car doors and as I got assistance fromthe gardai to get my car out we were pelted with stones (theres nearly €900 worth of damage to my car) . I pointed the 3 lads out to an official of the club and told him exactly what happened.

I can soundly say you'll never see me in Athlone ever again.

[grounded]

Well done on the result you deserved it I suppose.

Good fun in the bounty before.Still cant believe that mad mons fan travelling down for the game :)

As for the kids causing trouble.I'm embarressed and still raging. We could have had a great support but once again it was more important to shout abuse at the opponsition.

I hope the guy that got injured will be ok.Unfortunately some used the occasion to play "Greenstreet". :o

[Battery Rover]

Terry, I don't really know what to say as i am really upset at what happened last night. One thing though is as a supporters club we will do everything we can to weed out these scumbags, b*stards, knackers.

[Magicme]

Hey Battery & Grounded...less of the "Mad Mons Fan" will ya! When a girl needs football a girl needs football!

I feel sorry for Battery and all the other lovely people of Athlone for having young girls like those coming near ur game. I was with the Galway fans and was disgusted by their behaviour. There was about 6 girls aged 15-17 who kept winding the Galway lads up and when one of them told them to feck off they accused him of spitting in her face and one of them proceeded to gob him right in the face...twice. It was such a shame coz the athmosphere was great and the Cootes were lovely. Its a pity that a few silly little girls who thought they were gorgeous decided to ruin the fun for everyone.

[Conor H]

The lads threw a banger once into the middle of us and we went and told the "stewards" about it.This was also after a couple of rocks were thrown and our flags were taken.When it went off the second time the GUFC lads had enough and decided to sort it out for themselves.The cowards ran and that was it really.

On another note the Mad As Cootes must be commended for showing their disgust at the incidents after the match.Fair play.....a credit to Athlone!

[exiled_gufc_fan]

It was a crying shame that it happened and based on the tv pictures does not portray attendance at an eL game in good light, nor indeed (regardless of who caused the incidents) light either set of fans up in glory.

The 150 people running was clearly visible on tv and the commentators picked up on events, saying there was no need for this sort of trouble etc etc.

I assume the matter will be dealt with by the FAI - though will this depend on whether the match officials mention it in their report?

In light of the previous incidents, the incidents referred to by the Sligo lads in the other thread (http://foot.ie/showthread.php?t=44951) and the pre-game concerns expressed on this forum, it is disappointing that Athlone Town officials did not act to ensure a situation like this did not develop.

[Louth4sam]

Like i said in the main forum we brought large crowds to athlone twice and there was no trouble at all from the athlone lads. Just a good bit of banter the whole way through. All games in the eircom league where there might be a hint of trouble should be segragated. We've only been doing it around five years but there hasnt been any trouble in the ground since.

[Conor H]

Like i said in the main forum we brought large crowds to athlone twice and there was no trouble at all from the athlone lads. Just a good bit of banter the whole way through. All games in the eircom league where there might be a hint of trouble should be segragated. We've only been doing it around five years but there hasnt been any trouble in the ground since.

Yes we know.We were saying all week that it had potential for a disaster with no segregation at the match.Although i don't like to blame ATFC for the behaviour of some tossers they were very il-prepared for trouble.They had2 guards who remained on the pitch for half the match and 3 stewards in between both sets of fans all of whom really weren't up to it.I won't be holding my breath for segregation next time either.

[GalwayFrancis]

the stewarding last night was a joke! and whats the point in having cops at a game, if they do nothing to help the situation? segregation in a ground which has two stands is very easy, why didnt they segregate last nights game. and after the game i went up to one of the stewards and asked about a escort out of the ground and i was told we would be getting a police escort to the motorway, did they forget or something? atfc should be held responsible for the damage caused to the bus and cars of gufc fans, and made pay for it

[GuisaSaigon]

great WIN .The "mad as cootes" were spot on and it was great to meet up with a bunch of proper LOI fans.
Fair play to to the team, to put on a performance like that in front of the cameras was legendary.
I dont want to talk much about the kids that caused trouble, I can only say that the way united fans behaved showed our class and the stewarding was a joke. I think it shows that there is a big onus on true LOI supporters to set standards of behaviour among fans.There are young impressionable kids going to games that unfortunately seem to choose characters from green street as role models.
Did any one tape the game ? I'd love to have a look at it again , maybe we can put it on in foxes pre game next week. It would be great to put the goals up on the net.Gethins was class we have to sign him up permanently.

[GUISAUltra]

wedefinitely need to sign gethins ful time, i said that the first time i saw him play. i think hes absolutely brilliant and no defence in the division knows what to do with him.
I have to say fair play to the three mad as cootes lads who waited with us galway fans and walked out to the bus with us. ye were a credit to ye're club and set an example for all other fans in the country

[Paddyfield]

They were kicking the car doors and as I got assistance fromthe gardai to get my car out we were pelted with stones (theres nearly €900 worth of damage to my car) ...

...I can soundly say you'll never see me in Athlone ever again.


Been there, done that Terry.

My car was spat on outside St Mel's Park after a Cup game a few years ago. My Uncle's car had it's side window smashed outside St Mel's in the 1980's. I saw another Galway registered car vandalised another time near the ground. It seems to be a pastime in Athlone to play with other peoples cars.

The locals should canvass the local poiticians to build a playground for the kids.

[Patrick Dunne]

No offence to the Athlone lads on here, but the blame for Saturday night lies totally with ATFC. Only for the intervention of the GUFC event controller and some of our own stewards, things could have been a lot worse.

In future, there will have to be GUFC stewards on duty at these games, as the Athlone stewards have shown themselves to be incompetent.

[Tir Oilean]

The way that event was controlled was a disgrace! I watched it on TV while receiving texts from someone in the ground. Mates that were watchin couldnt believe the Gardai just standing there doin nothing. I'd have got their badge numbers. They dont waste too much time dragging Men and women from the entrance to the Corrib Gas site!

The garda that goes to our home games should be sent down to teach them a thing or two. We can host crowds of 3 and 4000 without incident. I'm with Terry on this one I wont be goin there anymore (and not just because ye wont be in top flight)

Feel sorry for the Cootes that their club officials let them down so badly. its a disgrace that so much was awarded for the new ground when it clearly won't be hosting too many fans (home or away) and they cant control their own cling-on supporters (so called).

This post might be a bit strong but its how I feel, imagine if I was at the game.

[GalwayFrancis]

No offence to the Athlone lads on here, but the blame for Saturday night lies totally with ATFC. Only for the intervention of the GUFC event controller and some of our own stewards, things could have been a lot worse.

In future, there will have to be GUFC stewards on duty at these games, as the Athlone stewards have shown themselves to be incompetent.

ditto

[corbyeire]

my general impression was that these were not athlone fans - they were kids hanging around probably had been up at the circus up the road and generally looking for trouble

they probably got in for free and had no interest in the game whatsoever

after the first banger went off in the stand the stewards should have been there immediately

very bad show from atfc stewards and a pity scenes like that charge had to be seen on TG4 for the first ever division one game

lets hope galway show what the EL first division can truly be like the next night against cobh

as regard conor gethins - he is so good for this league that he is constantly given off side when he is not - just too fast for the linesmen!

lets keep the pressure on against kildare

[corbyeire]

oh yea thanks for the lift p dunne

[Lim till i die]

Saw it on telly last night, was flicking between that and the Chelsea Barca game and I have to say the gap in standard was huge :p

Looked awful, that pitch was an absolute bog and the stand the camera was facing looked like a teenage disco

Athlone stewards were pretty crap. There seemed to be a lot of them there just Ar$in about doing nothing when all it would have taken was half dozen stewards and one guard standing in a line between the Athlone kids and the Galway kids and hey presto - No trouble.

Also, at one stage Galway had a throw and when the player went to collect the ball one of the stewards kicked it over his head then turned around to have a laugh with above mentioned kids. Only, a small thing but pretty pathetic at the same time.

Still, it was nice to hear that at least Limerick and Galway fans agree on Eric Lavine :p

[Terry]

the problem was that they were coming around the back of the stand as well as the front !

[Lim till i die]

the problem was that they were coming around the back of the stand as well as the front !

Then have stewards on either side of the Galway fans

It looked like there was enough there, just not really doing anything

[corbyeire]

as far as i could make out a lot of them werent in the actual ground - just behind the fences/stand and throwing things in from there - there was no barrier really

[GuisaSaigon]

Saw it on telly last night, was flicking between that and the Chelsea Barca game and I have to say the gap in standard was huge

I know, the champions league isn't what it used to be ! :D

[corbyeire]

nice one!

[Terry]

Then have stewards on either side of the Galway fans

It looked like there was enough there, just not really doing anything

Some of those "stewards" wouldnt have been more than 16-17 years old ! so would have been incapable of doing anything !

[Terry]

Tony happy with united response. See www.galwayunitedfc.ie

[corbyeire]

lim til i die - what program was the highlights of the gufc athlone game on?

[GUISAUltra]

there was 2 stands in athlone so segregation should have been fairly simple, but us in one stand and them in the other. it would have solved an awful lot of problems but then again that would have made sense so thats no good for athlone

[corbyeire]

the problem was athlone/buccaneers wanted to charge €15 for the main seated stand and have the terraces at €10 - if they segregated GUFC fans may not have paid for seats

[corbyeire]

Is this sort of thing common at grounds you go to?

not at all - first bit of agro all season was athlone and it seemed to carry on till the last night - not in evidence anywhere else this season

[GUISAUltra]

its weird because this is the first season where there has been real agro between both sets of supporters. there seems to be a crowd of youths in athlone intent on this becoming a bit of a violent derby and i dont know why. the first time in athlone one of our fans was hit in the face by a stone and then they vandalise galway united property in terryland and now this the last night.
i feel really sorry for the genuine athlone fans, "The Mad As Cootes" as they are genuine football fans and very sound lads but the other yobs that come to the games give them a bad name and i know from speaking to them the last night that they are really trying to weed those kids out and get them banned

[galwaygirl]

Without wanting to promote violence.. should you not all get together for the next visit and teach these boys a lesson??

There wont be a next visit, we'll never b playin them again:D ;)

[Martinho II]

i was over in the stand at the far end during yer game. I couldnt believe my eyes with the lack of segregation -very similar to the trouble at the shels drogs game last night! i was wonderin why the athlone fans alll deserted at the end now i see why.

these troublemakers should be thrown out of the league.