GALWAY United manager John Caulfield wants his players to embrace the opportunity that is in front of them this Saturday when they take on Bohemians in the semi-finals of the FAI Cup at Eamonn Deacy Park (2.40pm).

It will be just the seventh-ever FAI Cup semi-final contested by the club, and a first since 2008, and the United manager says he will be telling his players to make sure they enjoy the occasion, but also do themselves justice in what should be a cracking cup tie.

“It is not too often that players get to a cup semi-final and have the opportunity of getting to a final, and with the home draw and a sell-out game, we are really looking forward to it. You need the team to settle down early and play their best: if you play your best, you have a chance. All week I will be telling the lads just to make sure they don’t regret it,” Caulfield told Tribune Sport after Monday’s training session in Drom, the facilities owned by Salthill Devon which United use for training.

“We will have prepared well and must make sure we put in a good performance. If they play well and they are beaten by a better side, you can do nothing about that, but don’t come back and say ‘we didn’t play well’ or ‘ we got too nervous’, stuff like that – keep the week as normal as you can, keep your composure, keep your cool, and if we do that, we have a chance. We know how good Bohs are, but we feel that if we put in a good performance, we have a right chance,” he said.

United have been flawless at home this season: 18 games played, 18 games won, with just five goals conceded in a season which has seen the biggest crowds for years at Eamonn Deacy Park.

The Dundalk cup match as a sell-out; the league game against Cobh was a sell-out; there was close to 3,000 for the league match with Waterford in May; more than 2,500 at the recent Monday night game against Finn Harps, and every visiting team has been beaten.

“It is a lovely place to play, but we wanted to make it horrible for teams to come and play with our intensity. We wanted the crowd on board, and I think even done that this year,” United goalkeeper and two-time FAI Cup winner, Brendan Clarke, said at the media day on Lansdowne Road on Tuesday.

“We probably won games we should have drawn, but the fact we have won every home this year – Bohs aren’t going to care about that, they will be putting plans in place to come down the road and win the game,” he said.

Pictured: Galway’s United’s Darren Clarke flying high against Athlone Town in Friday night’s First Divsion tie at Eamonn Deacy Park. Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy.