There's something about the FAI Cup that stirs emotions unlike anything else in the Irish football calendar.
The final at the Aviva has taken on a prestige that’s unrivalled - not just for the day itself, which brings colour and passion from every corner of the ground, but for what’s on offer at the end of it: silverware, a European place, and this year, a golden ticket into the Europa League qualifying rounds.
For a club like Sligo Rovers, who are fighting their battle at the wrong end of the table, that kind of opportunity can define a whole season, as we saw with Drogheda United’s cup success last season.
Which is what makes last weekend's collapse in Kerry all the more painful.
A 3-0 lead, Owen Elding bagging his first senior hat-trick - it should have been a night to remember for all the right reasons.
Instead, it became one to forget. A historic comeback by Kerry, capped off by a place in the semi-finals against Shamrock Rovers, sent shockwaves through the league.
You don't often see a Premier Division side undone like that by a First Division outfit. But that’s the magic and the cruelty of the Cup. One team’s dream becomes another’s regret.
You can’t help but feel for Elding. Imagine that trip home on the bus back to the northwest - three goals to his name, a definite highlight of his young career so far, and yet I’d be confident he didn’t even crack a smile on the journey.
These are the cruel contradictions that only football can produce. The joy of personal achievement smothered by the suffocating reality of a team collapse.
It’s a harsh lesson for any young player: you don’t get to choose when your big moments come, but you also don’t get to control how they’re remembered.
For Sligo, tonight’s game against Drogheda is a big one. It’s about bouncing back quickly. It’s therapy. It’s an urgent need to move forward, to shake the cobwebs of last week’s disaster and begin the process of restoring belief.
There’s very little time for reflection at this stage of the season, especially when you’re sitting level on points with Galway United and avoiding the relegation play-off spot is in sight.
Across the country, Galway will be trying to do the same thing.
Their own cup exit at the hands of St Patrick’s Athletic was far less dramatic but no less gut-wrenching.
Taking Pat's to extra-time, drawing level late through a deflected David Hurley effort, and then falling victim to the class of Chris Forrester and Jordan Garrick, who both scored excellent goals after Killian Brouder’s red card.
And now, back to Richmond Park again, this time in the league.
There’s no better fixture Galway could wish for to try and put things right after last Sunday’s cup exit. Football doesn’t often gift you opportunities like that - the chance to right a wrong in the same ground, against the same opposition.
Galway are walking into one of the toughest grounds in the country, trying to take points off a side that just ended their cup run.
John Caulfield is hopeful his Galway United side can use their resolute performance in defeat to St Pat's as a platform in their league run-in | @Corktod pic.twitter.com/rh6jgju5B8
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) September 14, 2025
The truth is, at this point in the season, it’s not about how well you play - it’s about getting the job done.
Performances don’t win you safety. Results do. We’re into the business end now, where clean sheets are gold, scrappy goals are sought after, and back-to-back wins can feel like a miracle.
For Sligo and Galway, these next few weeks will define not just their league campaigns, but potentially the immediate future of their clubs.
Because relegation in this league doesn’t just mean a change of scenery. It means reduced budgets, player departures, smaller crowds, and a long climb back.
Conversely, a good run of form now - a strong finish to the season - can spark something greater. And for clubs who missed their shot at glory in the Cup, the league is the only remaining battlefield.
Dusting yourself down and going again is a common overused phrase in football. But for a club like Sligo Rovers right now, it’s a necessity.
They have no choice but to go again - to put last weekend behind them, no matter how much it hurts, and focus on what’s next.
Because in this league, recovery isn’t just possible. It’s essential.
And if Owen Elding scores again tonight, maybe this time he'll allow himself a smile on the way home.
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