Soccer Wrap with Mike Rafferty

The Galway League maintained their impressive start to the Oscar Traynor Cup campaign with a comfortable success in Sligo on Sunday and in the process won the Regions Trophy for the event and having finished top of their group also qualified for a home quarter-final in the knock-out stages.

With no Premier League action, all the games were concentrated in the lower divisions and Maree-Oranmore B and Corrib Celtic took over joint leadership of the Championship, when Knocknacarra held leaders Craughwell United to a draw.

Salthill Devon B and Colga B did likewise in Division One; while Bearna Na Forbacha and East Galway United were the big movers in Division Two.

OSCAR TRAYNOR CUP

Sligo-Leitrim 0

Galway League 2

What a difference a year makes. Last season the Galway League travelled to Yeats County and were humbled in an embarrassing defeat, but on this occasion, such an occurrence was never on the cards as the visitors controlled this game from beginning to end and indeed but for some very poor finishing, matters would have been even more emphatic at the finish.

That aside, the win was all Brendan O’Connor’s side could achieve as goals each side of the break, eased them to a comfortable victory.

Having registered a 2-0 win over Roscommon in their opening outing and drawing 1-1 away with Mayo last time out, any sort of result was going to be enough for Galway to qualify for the next round and their ambitions were strengthened even further when Mayo – who were topping the group on goal difference – fell to a surprise 2-1 defeat away against Roscommon on Sunday and in the process had to settle for the runners-up position.

O’Connor made four changes to the selection that drew with Mayo last time out as goalkeeper Arek Mamala returned between the posts in place of TJ Forde; while Adam Duffy, Joe Collins, and Mikey Fox came in for Kacper Zatonski, Aidan Coyle, and Timmy Molloy, who was absent through injury.

Having spurned many earlier chances, Galway took the lead on 34 minutes when Colm Whelan headed in a Kody McCann cross; and they doubled their advantage on 72 minutes when Padraic Cunningham also applied a headed finish to a Calym Crowe delivery to make it 2-0.

Missed chances aside, this was a very accomplished performance, as the solid defensive display of the visitors also left the home side struggling to create almost anything of note as Mamala had a very comfortable afternoon.

Sligo-Leitrim: Callaghan, Conway, Hannon, Gorman, Lynch, Stinchon, Montgomery, Fowley, Crowne, Armstrong, Spratt.

Galway League: Mamala, O’Gorman, Duffy (Zatonski 90), Ward, Crowe, Collins, Neary (O’Riordan 80), Whelan (Coyle 74), McCann, Cunningham (Daly 74), Fox (Browne 67).

Referee: Eoin McLoughlin.

Pictured: The Galway Oscar Traynor team which defeated the Sligo/Leitrim League on Sunday. Back row, from left:  Kody McCann, Padraic Cunningham, Nathan Ward (captain), Arek Mamala, Calym Crowe, and Colm Whelan. Front: Luke O’Gorman, Aaron Neary, Joe Collins, Mikey Fox, and Adam Duffy.