Drogs ⚽ Tribesmen ⚽ Cup Exit

Anthony McIntyre ⚽ It was not the result we wanted but very much the one we expected.

Drogs go marching out, not on . . . no longer competing for the 2006 FAI Cup.

Normally, the Drogs would be given a fighting chance in this sort of game. A home fixture against a Galway side which while positioned above Drogheda in the league table are not one of the formidable Dublin sides, nor are they regarded as belonging to the big guns club. So, fans could arrive at Sullivan and Lamb Park anticipating a quarter final victory. That would leave the side knocking on the door of the Aviva with a real possibility of crossing the portal come November cup final day. A most welcome vista on the back of a dismal season thus far. We will still make the journey to Dublin on the day but it won't be in the claret and blue. A Dublin pub crawl has its own lure regardless of who is playing.

Jay, who will be with us on final day, has outgrown dependency on adults and is more than happy to go to the games with his friends. It reminded me so much of being let loose with my own buds at his age, turning up at the Oval on a Saturday afternoon to watch Glentoran. I would not want to have been accompanied and constrained by my da, particularly when it came to Big Two games - the Glens and the Blues. Not exactly the equivalent of the Glasgow Old Firm but the rivalry and resentment was both real and tabid.

I made the prediction for this one, no longer remembering at this stage whether Paddy concurred with me. The Drogs would not have an extended cup run. Galway would return to semifinal action after a three year absence.

What lit up the night for me was action not from the pitch but from the terraces, and it did not come in the form of flares. The Ultras by now seem sick to the teeth of the profiteering owners who shafted Joanna Byrne. She was forced to walk the plank for taking a principled stand against the FAI over its refusal to boycott the national team of the country of child killers. The Ultras held aloft a banner calling time on Trivela's involvement in the club. While this protest was probably more a reaction to the lowly league position than it was to do with the Byrne issue, it was uplifting all the same.

On the field The Drogs started as if they meant business, even going ahead three minutes after being forced to replace Keegan Ancelin twelve minutes in due to an injury. A Conor Kane throw in, Galway failed to clear their lines, Brandon Kavanagh pounced and the Aviva in November seemed that little bit closer. But like the oasis in the desert it turned out to be a mirage. The Tribesmen drew level midway through the first half courtesy of a headed effort by Stephen Walsh. The Drogs almost snatched a lead in the dying moments of the half when Alfie Bates whipped in an inch perfect cross which Doyle failed to convert.

Dpyle again came close in the 57th minute but his shot rebounded off the post. That it was not his night was underscored by a second yellow card for diving. They call it simulation these days. With almost thirty minutes remaining on the clock to our right, the Drogs reduced to ten men were up against it. Our tribe looked certain to lose to the Tribesmen. This was put beyond doubt eight minutes from time when Lee Devitt cracked home a worthy winner.

On the way out, we engaged in conversation with the father of one of the Drogheda players. Knowledgeable about the game and fiercely proud of his son, his no nonsense insights into the club's predicament as it roots around the drop zone were invaluable. Not the worst end to an otherwise disappointing evening.

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