Once again, Paul Doolin failed to win in Belfield Park, and indeed it will be his Drogheda side who will be much the happier with a replay after this exciting Cup tie at a packed Belfield Park on Friday night. At times, UCD made a complete mockery of Drogheda's league position and played the Drogs off the park for spells, but they ended up clinging on as Drogs came close to snatching a late victory.
As in the Second Round against Cork, UCD started slowly and Drogheda were by far the livelier team in the opening 20 minutes. However, the UCD defence, and Conor Kenna in particular, were exceptional, and Drogheda failed to create any clear-cut chances.
As the game wore on, and UCD got used to the pace, the Students started to peg the visitors back. Seán Finn had a trademark long-range drive inches wide, while Rob McAuley maybe went to ground a little too early when pushed in the back in the box; Robbie Martin was booked after for protesting. UCD suffered a blow midway through the first half when Alan Mahon, who had picked up a hamstring injury during the Bray game and had played on, and in fact hadn't trained all week, limped off after winning a challenge in defence. In a very attacking substitution, Pat McWalter came on, with Pat Sullivan dropping to full-back. Initially, though, he didn't seem interested in playing there, and got forward to support the attack at every possible moment. Drogheda looked a very ordinary side during the latter stages of the first half, resorting to hoofing clear to clear their lines before the next attack came on them. The defence in particular was looking very shaky, and there were several needless corners and throws given away courtesy of badly misplaced passed when they came under pressure.
Any thoughts that the half-time break would take the wind out of UCD's momentum were dispelled shortly into the second half as the Students started to dominate their opponents, and finally carved out some decent opportunities as well. Robbie Martin chased a ball which Drogheda keeper Gary Rogers had covered, but he inexplicably let the ball slip out of his grasp; Martin teed up Willie Doyle, but he took too long and, with Rogers still scrambling back into place, scuffed his shot badly wide. You got the feeling, though, that had Doyle played more than five minutes' football in the previous five games, the result could have been different.
Next up with a chance was Pat McWalter, who beat his marker for pace to bear down on goal, but his shot was weak, and Rogers got down well to save. Then Gary Dicker, hugely impressive in centre-mid, ran onto a clearance only to drive his shot into the ground and take the sting out of it.
Drogheda belatedly got back into the game, and a long-range drive was well turned away by UCD keeper Darren Quigley. From the corner, UCD cleared to Pat McWalter, who was tackled - fairly by the referee, but to the obvious consternation of the UCD bench. Drogheda poured forward again, and three shots from the edge of the area were blocked away by the UCD defence.
The game was developing into a real end-to-end Cup tie, with Drogheda countering well only to find the UCD defence recouping in numbers, while for UCD's part, Pat McWalter and Mick O'Donnell were causing problems on the wings, while some of the build-up play, even from defence, was of the highest order.
As the game entered the closing stages, Drogheda had their best spell of the match, forcing a series of corners - one of which caused the cancellation of Brian Newguy Gannon's introduction after nearly three months out injured. Yet again, though the UCD defence coped admirably, and were really only stretched as the game entered injury-time. Darren Quigley came out for a through ball, but Conor Kenna got their first and cleared, but only to forward Mark Rooney - 2 goals in 47 league games for UCD and Drogheda - and with Quigley backpedalling, Rooney unleashed a brilliant first-time shot which was destined for the bottom corner when, with the UCD fans scarcely able to believe that the player they had actually chanted to be introduced was about to end the Cup dream, Quigley got down to make an even better save and tip the ball just wide.
UCD - Quigley; Mahon (McWalter 25), McAuley, Kenna, McNally; Dicker, Sullivan, Finn, O'Donnell; Doyle (Kierans 70), Martin. Subs not used - Whelan, Foley, Gannon
Att - c 1620
