Match Report – Bray Wanderers 3 Athlone Town 0

 

Bray ended the first series of (nine) matches in the SSE Airtricity First Division season with an emphatic win. 

 

The 3-0 success on Friday night also ended the club’s seven-month search for a home league win at the Carlisle Grounds. 

 

And in the process, recorded their first league clean sheet of 2024 campaign. 

 

Two goals in four second half minutes – Paul Murphy’s first for the club and Peter Grogan first home score – just before the hour mark helped sealed the points. 

 

The visitors had been reduced to ten players just after the half hour. And the Green and White’s took full advantage. 

 

From the team who gone down 2-0 away to Finn Harps in Donegal last Monday, the Seasiders made one change – with Guillermo Almirall taking the place of the injured Cole Omorehiomwan. 

 

That meant the returning Callum Thompson filled the void on the bench. 

 

The turning point came in the 32nd minute. From Kieran Cruise’s pass down the left channel, Peter Grogan was involved in a foot race with away defender Dylan Hand. 

 

Both went to ground just outside the box, and with referee Chris Sheehan in close attention, he brandished a red card to the Athlone player for his part in the altercation. 

 

Worse was to follow for the visitors when play restarted in the 34th minute. 

 

Shane Griffin got the resulting free kick up and over the wall. The ball bounced just before the line and up away from the diving Enda Minogue and it’s way to the net. 

 

As the rain fell, the Seagulls patience in the build-up was rewarded in the 56th minute as they doubled that lead. 

 

Griffin played a quick free wide right to Conor Knight. His driven cross took deflection as it dropped in the box. 

 

Grogan hit an overhead kick from 15-yards. It bounced down and up off the far left upright. But Paul Murphy was first to react and head in the rebound from close range for his first goal for the club. 

 

The celebrations had barely died down when it became 3-0 in the 59th minute. 

 

Knight picked out Grogan’s run in the right of the penalty area. He shimmied to evade Minogue’s challenge and slotted into the net from an acute angle 

 

Just before the final whistle, Rhys Knight made his home debut by coming out the bench along with fellow teenager Alain Kizenga. 

 

Bray Wanderers: Stephen Mc Guinness; Freddie Turley, Kilian Cantwell, Paul Murphy, Evan Osam; Harry Groome (Alain Kizenga 90), Shane Griffin; Conor Knight (Thomas Morgan 79), Guillermo Almirall (Zach Nolan 85), Kieran Cruise (Rhys Knight 90); Peter Grogan. 

 

Subs not used: Callum Thompson, Jamie Duggan, Daniel Chukwu, Zayd Abada, Benjamin Clark. 

 

Booked: Osam 90 + 2, Griffin 90 + 5. 

 

Athlone Town: Enda Minogue (Andrew Stuart Trainor 90); Oisin Duffy, Dylan Hand, Jarlath Jones, Matthew Leal (Amardo Akeem Oakley half time); Daniel McKenna; Brian Torre, Carl Mujaguzi, Aaron Connolly ((Gideon Tetteh 77), Jamal Ibrahim (Jamar Campion-Hinds 59); Dean Ebbe. 

 

Subs not used: Ruben Manuel Oliveria Ferreira, Shane Forbes, Divine Izekor, Wedu Reneilwe Batlokwa, Roscoe Rubinstein. 

 

Booked: Connolly 28. 

 

Sent off: Hand 32. 

 

Referee: Chris Sheehan. 

 

Mint + man of the match: Kilian Cantwell. 

 

Pictures: Peter Minogue.