Galway United and Shelbourne shared the spoils at Eamonn Deacy Park after Bobby Burns netted late to cancel out Mipo Odubeko's first-half header.
Ahead of the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division clash, there were two major stories surrounding both clubs off the pitch.
Damien Duff's abrupt departure from Shelbourne dominated the news last weekend, while Galway United hit the headlines in recent days, with star striker Moses Dyer set to leave the club.
Dyer,the league's current top goalscorer with ten goals, is expected to move closer to his native New Zealand to sign for Cambodian Premier League side Phnom Penh Crown.
Back on the pitch, tonight’s encounter began at a lively pace with the first chance of proceedings falling the way of United striker Malcom Shaw, but Conor Kearns did enough to keep out the low effort.
Shelbourne mustered their first clear-cut opportunity just after the 10th minute. The reigning top-flight champions must have thought they were going to go in front when Mipo Odubeko got in behind the United defence and rounded goalkeeper Evan Watts, only for his open goal effort to be miraculously cleared off the line by the retreating Garry Buckley.
Shels started to take control of the early exchanges, as a Sean Boyd penalty claim was waved away, before the eventual goal arrived.
In the 25th minute, Jonathan Lunney dinked a delicate ball into the box, which landed on the head of Odubeko, who made no mistake this time around, as his header hit the back of the net.
Just before the break, United pushed for a leveller, as Shaw, who showed positive glimpses in his first full start, tested Kearns with a low strike, with the rebound landing at the feet of Edward McCarthy, but the Shels shot-stopper came to the rescue once again to keep his side in front.
Like the first, the second half started on the front foot. Just after the interval, the energetic Odubeko found space to run at the home backline, before he made Watts work to keep the scoreline at a minimum. A few minutes later, the Shels goalscorer was superbly set up by Harry Wood, but the striker’s close-range wayward strike failed to hit the target.
The second-half chances continued, as Boyd soon had the ball in the back of the net, but was flagged for offside, while Odubeko glanced a headed opportunity just wide of the post. At the other end of the pitch, McCarthy went close with a deflected effort, while Cillian Tollett nearly got on the end of a set-piece.
As Shelbourne seemed to be managing the game, United were rewarded, as substitute Burns took full advantage of a Kearns fumble to level the match in the 85th minute. A late opportunity came the way of Boyd, but, to the relief of the United faithful, his stinging strike flashed just wide of the target, as the points were shared on Corribside.
Galway United: Watts; Byrne, Slevin, Brouder (Borden 45), Walsh; Cunningham (Burns 57), Hurley (Donelon 81), Shaw (Tollett 72), McCarthy (McCormack 81 / Horgan 90), Buckley; Esua.
Shelbourne: Kearns; Gannon, Ledwidge, Chapman (Coote 90), Lunney (Coyle 75); Wood (McInroy 62), Boyd, Odubeko (Martin 90), Kelly (Caffrey 62), Norris (Wilson 62); Temple.Referee: Kevin O’Sullivan.
