Ahead of kick-off, Jon Daly made 5 changes to his side from Friday nights clash in Dundalk, with the Blues Head Coach giving Alan Zborowski his League of Ireland debut at right-full back, with Benny Couto, Pádraig Amond, Trae Coyle & Sam Glenfield all returning to the starting-eleven.
Hayden Cann gave the game it’s first chance, as the Blues number 16 heading over Conan Noonan’s free-kick delivery inside the Galway area.
The hosts had their first opportunity of the game after 7′, when Matty Wolfe rattles Stephen McMullan’s left-hand post from 25 yards, before the Blues cleared the resulting ball.
Galway took the lead on the ten minute mark, as Aaron Bolger picked out Kris Twardek on the Galway right wing, who got in behind the Blues defence before finding the bottom left-corner to give the hosts the lead.
Noonan looked to get the Blues back on level terms mid-way through the first-half, firing an effort towards the Galway goal, only to see his effort blocked by Aaron Bolger on the edge of the Galway area. Moments later, Amond headed over the Galway goal as the Blues began to put pressure on the Galway defence.
After putting the Galway defence under pressure, the Blues got their reward on 35′, when Luke Heeney’s cross from the left was headed into his own goal by Galway’s Gianfranco Facchineri to get the Blues level in Galway.
And just three minutes later, the Blues took the lead. Stephen McMullan’ goal kick was deftly headed on by Jorgen Voilas to Pádraig Amond, who emphatically headed home from close-range to net his first of the season to give Jon Daly’s side the lead just before half-time.
As the Blues looked to see out the first-half, the referee added one minute on for injury-time in the first-period. In the 47th minute of the first-half, the hosts were awarded a penalty when Sam Glenfield was adjudged to have fouled Aaron Bolger in the Blues defence, before David Hurley sent Stephen McMullan the wrong way to make it 2-2 at half-time.
Galway threatened twice in quick succession inside the opening eight minutes of the first-half, with Stephen McMullan saving well from David Hurley, before Stephen Walsh was unable to direct his header on goal.
On 57′ Amond got in behind the Galway defence before seeing his goal-bound effort blocked by Killian Brouder, before moments later Trae Coyle also had an effort of his own blocked, as Waterford looked to regain the lead in Eamonn Deacy Park.
Despite the Blues’ pressure, it was the hosts who found the fifth goal of the game, as David Hurley found Kris Twardek with space inside the Blues penalty area, as the Canadian found McMullan’s far corner to give Galway the lead for the second-time in the game.
On 65′, Ed McCarthy & Frantz Pierrot were both booked for the hosts, before Galway Head Coach John Caulfield was sent off for demonstrating his frustration to the officials on both yellow-cards.
Tommy Lonergan was introduced off the bench along with Conor Carty with just over 20 minutes remaining, and it was Lonergan who almost made an immediate impact for the Blues, heading just wide from Benny Couto’s cross less than two minutes after his introduction.
Hayden Cann was next to test the Galway defence, heading just wide from Conan Noonan’s corner on 84′, before at the other end, Frantz Pierrot fired wide of the Blues goal after getting beyond his marker inside our area.
Moments later, Conor Carty tried his luck from the edge of the Galway area, firing just wide of the Galway goal.
Frantz Pierrot sealed the win for the hosts in the final minute of normal time, firing home from close-range after Lomboto’s effort was saved.
The action didn’t stop there as just sixty seconds later the Blues were awarded a penalty after Benny Couto was fouled, as Tommy Lonergan dispatched the spot-kick to make it 4-3.
Galway United FC: Watts (GK), Parker, (80′ Williams) Keohane (C) (46′ McCarthy), Brouder, Walsh (54′ Pierrot), Bolger (80′ Lomboto), Hurley, Twardek, Facchineri, Wolfe, (69′ Barratt), Devitt.
Waterford FC: McMullan (GK); Zborowski, Cann, Mansfield, Couto; Heeney (76′ McMenamy), Glenfield, Voilas (69′ Carty), Noonan, Coyle (69′ Lonergan); Amond (C).
Attendance: 1,836.
