Reds Ready For Galway Challenge | OneFootball

Following the dramatic late scenes in Oriel Park last Friday where Shelbourne bagged a crucial three points, John Russell’s men now travel to Galway with renewed hope. The Reds’ boss sat down with ShelsTV ahead of the game.

“Obviously winning games of football breeds confidence. Coming in on the Monday after the last game it was great to be pleased with our result as well as our performance. Now it’s all about pushing on and capitalising on that positivity.”

The Head Coach then spoke about the importance of this upcoming trip out West: “This is our game in hand; it’s an opportunity to grab some more points and to put them on the board. The togetherness and fight that we showed in coming from behind twice last week is a good roadmap for what we’ll need to kick on and get more positive results from now on.”

Nobody epitomised fighting spirit in Oriel Park more than two-goal hero Sean Boyd. The striker needed pain-killing injections on the day of the game to take part. Russell spoke on how his recovery was going and the health of the squad overall.

“We’ve had to manage Sean this week in terms of his training because he’s still a bit sore. But he will be available for the game which we’re delighted with. Beyond that we have Marco (Untergrabner) and Sam (Bone) available now and John Martin will also come back into the squad. They are three big guys who will definitely help us as they come back into the fold.”

But as some players are returning, others will unfortunately miss out. “The game is probably a little too soon for Eddie (Beach). Conor (Walsh) has been working hard in the background and did very well when called upon last week. JJ (Lunney) is unavailable, but we’re hoping that he will be back for the Sligo Rovers game as he should be back in full training next week. Beyond that Dan Kelly misses out due to suspension.”

Having faced Galway United so recently at the same venue, Russell reflected on the experience Shelbourne can take from having come so close to victory at Eamonn Deacy Park: “Galway are always a tough opponent, particularly at home, and we will have to be at our best on Friday night. They have players that can hurt you and we know we must be mindful of that. We were 90 seconds away from victory last time, and obviously there are positives we can take from that. But small moments: individual duels, winning our tackles and taking our chances – they will likely decide this match.”

Joyous scenes greeted the full-time whistle in Oriel Park last Friday, as both fans and players revelled in victory together. This Friday the Reds’ supporters will be travelling in numbers to support their side once more and John Russell signed off with a word for them.

“The fans were amazing last Friday. The scenes at the end of the match, that’s what you live for. For everyone to be together and to feel that euphoria of a last-minute winner, it brings everyone together. We want that to be a catalyst that will drive us on now for the remainder of the season. And we will absolutely need our fans behind us, helping us to achieve that goal.”

Kick-off at Eamonn Deacy Park is at 7:45pm and the game is live on LOITV.