Blues secure cup passage with late flurry of goals in Mochta's win
Waterford's Conan Noonan celebrates his goal against St. Mochta's.
A flurry of three late goals from Trae Coyle, Tommy Lonergan, and Padraig Amond helped Waterford FC progress into the third round of the Sports Direct Men’s FAI Cup against a battling St. Mochta’s at the RSC on Friday evening last.
After Lonergan and Conan Noonan had put the hosts in the driving seat with two first-half goals, the Dublin side got a lifeline back into the game through a Dean Casey goal, but the Blues held their nerve to score three goals in four minutes to secure a passage into the next round.
Tommy Lonergan, who signed a permanent deal with the club in the past week, capped it off with the opening goal inside ten minutes. The centre forward got between the defender and goalkeeper to stay on his feet to slot the ball into the back of an empty net.
Lonergan was in the thick of the action six minutes later when he took possession of the ball on the left side of the penalty area, but his curling effort that looked destined for the far corner was turned around the posts by St. Mochta’s keeper Adam Hayden.
The Blues were celebrating their second goal of the game on 34 minutes when some patient build-up saw Lonergan’s super through ball send Conan Noonan behind the defence to drill a low shot past keeper Adam Hayden.
A clumsy tackle from Blues left full-back Ryan Burke on Tyler Doherty four minutes later resulted in the Dublin side being awarded a penalty by referee Glen Geraghty, and Dean Casey sent Stephen McMullan the wrong way from 12 yards.
It was first-half substitute Trae Coyle that settled the nerves of the Waterford faithful as he grabbed a third goal for his side on 83 minutes when he took a pass from Dean McMenamy before rifling a right-footed shot past Adam Hayden for his first goal for the club.
Lonergan notched his second goal of the contest two minutes later when he fired a shot beyond the reach of keeper Hayden, and a third goal in the space of four minutes arrived on 87 minutes. Finlay Armstrong was the man who turned provider for Padraig Amond, and he powered a header past Hayden from six yards.
McMullan; Horton (Coyle 35), Boyle, Leahy, Burke; McDonald, Rossiter (McMenamy 74), Armstrong; Lonergan, Amond, Noonan.
Hayden; McGowan, Dunne, Shannon, McWilliams (Giles 55); Grogan (Maher 71), Doherty, Buckley, Casey, Robinson (Owens 71); Scott (Brady 55).
Glen Geraghty (Dublin).
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