[FM16] The Journey of a Lifetime - Journeyman Career

The Journey of a Lifetime

Manager Profile





Name: Grant Ferguson

Nationality: Northern Irish

Date of Birth: 10/4/1983 (32)

Coaching Badge: National A Licence

Past Experience: Professional Football (Regional Level)

Bio: Grant Ferguson was born in Belfast in 1983. He began playing football competitively at a young age, like many kids he wanted to be a striker, but he eventually settled as a Right Back. In his teens he was scouted by his local and childhood favourite team, Glentoran. After a few successful seasons with the Glens, Ferguson's luck was in as he moved across the pond to England in the 2005/06 season, signing for League 2 side, Bristol Rovers. Ferguson played well and quickly established himself as a first team player. The following season saw Bristol win the League 2 Playoffs and gain promotion to League 1. Bristol made a valiant effort at staying up, putting in mid-table performances each year and working above expectations, however the 2010/11 season saw them relegated back to League 2, and in the process Ferguson was released. He was picked up by newly promoted Chesterfield, but again his team failed to survive the relegation battle. A mixture of poor finance and a lingering injury saw Ferguson once again a free agent. At this stage, the twenty-nine year old realised his dreams of being a top professional footballer were over, Ferguson decided to return home and signed a three year deal with Glentoran, which also saw him pick up some coaching duties. At the end of the 2014/15 season, Ferguson decided to retire due to his old leg injury returning and a new found love for coaching. After gaining his coaching qualifications, Ferguson rejected a new contract with Glentoran looking to begin his managerial career at the young age of thirty-two.

The Beginning of a Journey

The teams looking for managers are few and far between at the minute. I've applied for six jobs so far; Irish sides, Derry City and Drogheda, Scotland's Berwick Rangers, local team Loughgall, and also - an optimistic one - League Two side, Cambridge United. Finally I applied for the recently vacated Glentoran job, they're my childhood team that's fell on hard times, maybe I could be the one to turn that around? Hopefully all goes well and I'll get something back, but I don't really have a strong ambition to manage any of these sides, except Cambridge and maybe Derry City. Failing all that, Bermuda is looking for a new gaffer; would be a nice holiday.

Some Career Objectives (Will be updated as we go on)

- Lead a small side to glory.

- Do the double.

- Do the treble.

- Win a top 3 European league.

- Manage a favourite team.

- Have European Success.

- Manage an international side.

- Manage abroad.

- Have success abroad.

- Get top level coaching badges.

- Become a world known manager.

- Top the Northern Irish Hall of Fame.

- Top the Global Hall of Fame.

Game Details

Nations (All leagues loaded - Medium database)

England

France

Germany

Holland

Italy

Ireland

Northern Ireland

Scotland

Spain

USA

The First Step

Galway United



Galway United Football Club are an Irish football club located in Galway. The board of the club, founded in October 2013, contains representatives of Mervue United, Salthill Devon, Galway United Supporters' Trust and the Galway FA, after the demise of the original Galway United in 2011. The club was originally formed as Galway F.C. but changed its name to Galway United for the start of the 2015 season. The club has yet to enjoy any cup success with it's only honour being third place in the 2014 Irish First Division. Rivals include two local teams: Sligo Rovers and Athlone Town. The club is nicknamed The Tribesman. Financial the club is okay and is estimated to be worth £975,000.

Expectations - Qualify for the Europa League

Current League Position - 3rd in the Irish Premier Division

Current FAI Cup Position - Third Round vs Limerick FC (21/8/15)

Current League of Ireland Cup Position - Knocked out in First Round by Longford Town

Starting Transfer Budget - £0

Starting Wage Budget - £6,934

Stadium - Eamonn Deacy Park (5,000)

First Team Squad

Goalkeepers

Conor Winn - Irish - 23 - £5.25k

Ger Hanley - Irish - 24 - £9.25k

Defenders

Colm Horgan - D(RL), WB® - Irish - 21 - £56k

Robin Dempsey - D(RLC) - Irish - 19 - £15.25k

Marc Ludden - D(L) - Irish - 25 - £12.25k - Joining Derry City 1/12/15

Jack Memery - D(LC) - Irish - 22 - £39.5k

Kilian Cantwell - D(LC) - Irish - 20 - £11.25k

Sam Oji - D© - English - 29 - £16k

Stephen Walsh - D©, ST© - 24 - £14.5k - Joining Derry City 1/12/15

Cormac Rafferty - D/WB® - 20 - £6k

Andy O'Connell - D/M© - 22 - £9k

Midfielders

Paul Sinnot [C] - D©, DM, M© - Irish - 29 - £10.75k

Alex Byrne - D/M© - Irish - 20 - £19k

Tomi Saarelma - M(L), AM(LC) - Finnish - 26 - £16.75k

David O'Leary - M© - Irish - 23 - £16.75k

Gary Shanahan - M/AM®, ST© - Irish - 22 - £13.75k

Jason Malloy - M/AM(RL) - Irish - 26 - £14k

Conor Barry - M/AM(LC) - Irish - 19 - £4.7k

Ryan Connolly [VC] - M/AM© - Irish - 23 - £150k

Adam Quirke - M/AM© - Irish - 17 - £3.9k

Conor Melody - AM(LC) - Irish - 18 - £28k

Strikers

Jake Keegan - AM(L), ST© - American - 25 - £190k - Assistant's report identifies him as our best player - Currently injured with a broken shin for up to 7 months

Conor Murphy - AM©, ST© - Irish - 22 - £35k

Enda Curran - ST© - Irish - 23 - £23.5k

Padraic Cunningham - ST© - Irish - 18 - £19.25k - Sold to Falkirk for £10,000

I feel that I can do well with Galway. They seem to be doing decent two-thirds of the way through the season. I think I will meet my expectations and qualify for the Europa League. Already I can see I will need to bring in some new blood into the team to strengthen it and help it play the football best suited to my tactics. Ten league games remain and FAI Cup matches will come and go throughout the year, so while the season is ending, it is still all to play for.

- Qualify for Europe consistently.

- Win their first bit of silverware.

- Win the Irish Premier Division.

- Remain debt free.

Good luck in Galway and welcome to the forum.

August 2015

Matches

1-1



Man of the Match: Killian Brennan

(Eamonn Deacy Park - Attendance: 1,158)

An uneventful match to say the least. Very few highlights up until the last third of the game, with the match being 0-0 right up to the 87th minute. After 87 minutes of nothing, Gary Shanahan knocked the ball past St Pat's keeper to put us in the lead. Immediately I told the team to drop back and defend for their lives, however St Pat's answered back straight away and tied it up. I was disappointing with the result but there are definite positives and the team looks like it will perform to expectations, but for now we will have to go through an adjustment period. The worst thing about this result was that it allowed Derry City to move into 3rd, knocking us down to 4th which the board won't be pleased with as it leaves us outside of the Europa League qualifying spots. On a better note, the team is now unbeaten in seven games, however only two of those were victories and three of them were draws that saw our opponents come back from us beating them. Obviously there is a problem with defending late on in a game.

5-2



Man of the Match: Gary Shaw

(City Calling Stadium - Attendance: 776)

Not much to say other than what the hell happened? The team just didn't look up to the challenge at all, but this can be partly attributed to two main players being suspended. Jake Keegan slotted in a goal in the 20th minute but the lead was not held for long as Longford's Gary Shaw equalised. Then in the 38th minute Don Cowan put Longford in front. Needless to say the team got a bollocking at half time, which obviously didn't get through to the team as Longford scored almost straight from the kick-off. I then changed formation to something Galway's backroom staff said was more familiar, a 4-2-2-2, a tactic which seemed to work as Jake Keegan scored his second in the 50th minute. Again this was short lived with a further two goals for Longford in the 59th and 83rd. The team got another bollocking in the team talk, hopefully the next match will

1-1



Man of the Match: John Kavanagh

(Turner's Cross - Attendance: 3,311)

Another uneventful match. I decided to go for the 4-2-2-2 formation which seemed to work well for a time in the last match and something the team seemed more comfortable with. The match opened with a goal for Cork from Billy Dennehy in the 4th minute and the match was rather 50/50 from there. Jake Keegan scored from an effort after receiving the ball from a perfect cross, however the play was offside and we were still a goal behind. Luckily Keegan had another chance with a headed effort in the 64th minute that finally got us the equaliser. While we didn't lose, drawing is doing us no favours as we four points behind Derry who are keeping us out of the Europa League spot.

3-2



Man of the Match: Conor Murphy

(Eamonn Deacy Park - Attendance: 1,007)

I decided to go back to my preferred 4-2-4 formation with two centre midfielders, two attacking midfielders, and two strikers. The scoring opening in the 2nd minute with Jake Keegan heading the ball past a fumbling Limerick keeper, Ali Abass after a superb cross from Colm Horgan. As per usual, the lead was short lived after Limerick equalised from a corner, with Paudie O'Connor heading it in in the 18th minute. The team then pulled the lead back with a sublime bit of play between the front line and a cross from Keegan to Conor Murphy who headed it in to take the score to 2-1 to Galway. Overall the first half the team really put the pressure on Limerick and I felt like the team was finally showing some passion. The second half started very well, a 55th minute goal shocked everyone when Gary Shanahan scored from a 25 yard cross, a perfect mistake. Limerick made sure to keep the pressure up with another headed goal by Ross Mann in the 63rd minute. Unfortunately we came close to answering back straight away but the ball was headed straight into the keepers hands - shots going straight at the keeper were to frequent in this match, maybe some finishing training is needed for the front line, but I'll keep a close eye on this for now as it is the thing that is costing us goals and victories. The last big highlight of the match saw Conor Murphy almost get his second but was well wide - again finishing seems to be a problem. Overall while Limerick had more shots and possession, it was us that took advantage of the possession and shots we had.

0-0



Man of the Match: Stephen Dooley

(Eamonn Deacy Park - Attendance: 1,251)

No changes from the team or tactics fielded last time, while we are underdogs in this match I'm hoping we can keep our good form running. A win here will put us a point behind Derry and keep the pressure on them for that ]Europa League[/b] spot. The match was 50/50 the entire first half, with no side showing dominance, same amount of shots and almost 50/50 possession. The second half saw the team pile on the pressure against Derry, with us having more shots despite playing a defensive game. For the last 10 minutes I decided to go out on the attack to see if we could scrape a win, however it was all for nothing as the match ended nil each and we are now left 4 points behind Derry and 5 league games without a win. It's looking more likely that we won't be playing European football next year.

Team News

- Eight players have signed new contracts keeping them in the team until December 2016, this list includes: Jason Molloy, David O'Leary, Ger Hanley, Conor Winn, Kilian Cantwell, Gary Shanahan, Tomi Saarelma, and Cormac Raftery. Alex Byrne also signed a deal that will see him at the club until December 2017.

- Padraic Cunningham has been sold to Falkirk for a fee of £10,000. This comes after Galway could not reach an agreement on a new contract for Cunningham, who's contract finished in December. As per an agreement with Cunningham's old club, Mervue United, they will receive 1% of the transfer fee - I hope that £10 does a lot for them. I'm disappointed to see Padraic go as he had good potential, but unfortunately his wage demands during contract negotiations were unreasonably.

- In fitness news Sam Oji has returned to full training after being out for 7 weeks with strained knee ligaments. At the same time however, Robin Dempsey is out for a week with food poisoning - let's hope it doesn't effect anyone else.

- Morton Nielson has been signed on a free from Sligo Rovers and will join Galway on the 1st December. The 25 year old Danish striker will replace the outgoing Padraic Cunningham. £90 will be paid to Sligo for the transfer to go through - I believe this was compensation since I went to Nielson directly with a contract offer and not through the club. Excited for him to join but I wish I didn't have to wait until December.

- After winning our FAI Cup 3rd Round Match, we drew Cork City in the Quarter Finals, hopefully the fact we are playing at home will give us the advantage. The match is played on the 11/9.

Hopefully September will be more fortunate and we can push for that Europa League spot. Other than that I want to make a good go at the FAI Cup, it could be a back door into Europe.

Good luck in Galway and welcome to the forum.

Thanks Nobby!

Things aren't looking too bad so far, hopefully all goes well and we get into Europe - that's the main aim.

September 2015

Matches

1-2



Man of the Match: Liam Miller

(Eamonn Deacy Park - Attendance: 993)

The first half, Cork was all over us. Within twenty minutes they had had 9 shots - only 2 on target though - and we hadn't had one. We had some lucky breaks but couldn't make any attempts. I think this was all largely due to playing defensively again against a stronger Cork. Just as I expected, in the 22nd minute, a through ball from Liam Miller - yes ex-Manchester United Liam Miller - led to Karl Sheppard beating my keeper. 5 minutes later a poor attempt at a clearance by Alex Byrne allowed Sheppard to score again. By half time we still hadn't had a single shot and Sheppard was running rings around us - we looked like a bunch of kids out there. Our first shot came from Gary Shanahan who blasted shot but the keeper saved it and the ball was cleared away before Jake Keegan could get a try. Finally in the 69th minute, old reliable himself, Jake Keegan, finished off a superb cross from Cormac Raftery to bring us back into the game. I brought on Conor Murphy in the 73rd minute to try and put some energy into our attack and take off a less than sharp, Enda Curran; I also went for a more attacking style of play to try and level the score. Nothing seemed to work, desperate times called for desperate measures and I pushed all players up to try and score. With a minute left, Keegan had the ball and ran into the box from the left wing, shooting from an awkward angle and wasting our last chance - especially with another player sill in the box. Cork started time wasting to add insult to injury. Our FAI Cup campaign was over; our back door into Europe was shut but at least we had more time to focus on the league and Cork would now have at least one more fixture which could help in our three way race to Europe between Galway, Derry, and Cork. On a brighter note we improved in our performance in last year's tournament when we got knocked out in the third round, so our second time in the cup was an improvement at least.

3-2



Man of the Match: Gary Shanahan

(Eamonn Deacy Park - Attendance: 1,567)

Yet again we we're getting dominated from the offset. Then after 12 minutes, Ryan McEvoy banged in a shot fro outside the box that my keeper had no hope of getting - I'm thinking a change of keeper may be needed. I changed tactics to the 4-2-2-2 to try something different; if the tactics I'm using don't work, there is no point in sticking with them. Our break came after a dodgy tackle inside the box in the 35th minute, which allowed Enda Curran to slot home a penalty with accuracy to tie things up. An error from the keeper almost cost us again in the 53rd, but excellent defending put a stop to that - definitely dropping Mr Hanley. However, in the 54th minute Bray were on the attack again and poor defending from Stephen Walsh and my keeper a million miles away allowed Bray to take the lead. Luckily enough we bounced straight back and a whipped cross from Gary Shanahan into Jake Keegan brought us our second equaliser. Tragedy struck in the 67th minute with our star striker, Keegan, picking up a potential shin injury; it looks serious but let's hope it won't have him out for too long, because God knows he's what keeps this team going. Our hopes were lifted when a goal kick took the action into the final third, it was knocked back by Bray but Paul Sinnott played the ball forward to Shanahan, which allowed him to again whip the ball into the box for Conor Murphy, who had just beat his marker, to finish it off against a hapless Bray keeper. Instantly I told the players to drop back and hold the ball and play up. More hope arrived in the 88th minute when a clearance from a Bray corner went straight to Conor Murphy who was threw on goal with a defender not far behind, unfortunately - and as usual - a poor shot at goal led to a save that went out for a corner. The three minutes of added time felt like a lifetime - especially a 91st minute corner which narrowly missed converting into a goal. It was 3 points against a bottom half team, but 3 points nonetheless. A well deserved Man of the Match for Gary Shanahan who created two goals - outstanding. The lads were delighted, hopefully this is the boost we need.

0-0



Man of the Match: Tomi Saarelma

(Dalymount Park - Attendance: 1,662)

I stuck with the 4-2-2-2 as it seems to be working more than my 4-2-4. The first half was end-to-end with Bohemians getting the slight edge on us. Conor Winn seemed to be much better in the sticks than Ger Hanley - the reason I was picking Hanley was that he was in form when I arrived, that didn't last very long though. The 26th minute saw a good fast paced attack by Bohemians, Patrick Kavanagh broke through but luckily he both missed and was offside. Our first big chance came from a play by Conor Murphy, he broke free but the defenders caught up with him, he passed the ball to Gary Shanahan, but nothing came of the play. At half time I subbed Enda Curran off, he's failed to impress since his return from injury even though the coach reports sung his praises. The last quarter of the match I told the team to push up a bit in hopes to catch Bohemians off guard. An 83rd minute corner almost saw Bohemians score, but a goal line clearance followed by a narrow miss denied them that opportunity. The match finished a goaless draw - again we didn't lose but we dropped points, and it's these draws that have kept us out of the Europa League. The team seemed pretty pleased with avoiding a loss to a higher placed team away, and I couldn't only say I was happy enough, but deep down the draws are getting to me now. Our Finnish winger, Tomi Saarelma, picked up the Man of the Match, which was a pleasant surprise. I think the problem is that we are missing Jake Keegan's goal scoring ability, although I have to say Conor Murphy is doing well in an attempt to cover.

0-1



Man of the Match: Harry Doherty

(The Showgrounds - Attendance: 2,196)

My first derby as Galway manager. A great chance came early on in the 6th minute when an indirect free kick went straight to an open Conor Murphy, unfortunately while on target the shot was saved, but a rebound back to Murphy who chipped the ball over the heads of the defence and keeper to allow Enda Curran to get his second goal since his return. The 9th minute saw another great chance as he ball was played down the middle after a poor throw in from Sligo to Curran/COLOR] who took a first time shot which was saved. It was clear that Tom Mohan (Sligo boss) had sent his players out to cut Conor Murphy out of the game because any time he got the ball multiple Sligo players ran towards him, at one stage in the 21st minute three Sligo players surrounded him - although this didn't work as Murphy passed the ball back and ran forward only to receive the ball and almost get us a second. The 26th minute almost saw an equaliser but Winn did well enough to put the ball out for a corner which led to nothing. What followed a few minutes later has led me to believe that there is a curse upon my strikers, as a poor tackle led to Conor Murphy sent off - this leaves me with a striker in a dry patch and a few youth team strikers, things are going to get very tough with just three matches left. With us a man down, Sligo started to pressure us. Marc Ludden tried for a long throw into the box but it went out to #990033 who was waiting outside the box, however his shot went just wide. Sligo again almost got the equaliser with a 30 yard shot from right back, Alan Keane, however Winn did well to tip it over the bar. I knew from the start of the second half that Sligo would go out all guns blazing, I decided to continue trying to control the game and attack, if we went into defensive mode we would only be inviting pressure which would eventually break us down. I focused on keeping my defence fresh and subbed on two defenders around 60 minutes in, at half time I had already subbed off Colm Horgan who has stubbed his toe. The problem seemed to be that once we went on the counter attack there was no link between the midfield and the strikers since we were a man down, however as long as we held possession I was happy - again we almost surprisingly managed to score but again Enda Curran's poor finishing prevented this. My game plan worked and we managed to hang on to our lead, beating our local rivals 1-0. I was elated. Sligo keeper, Harry Doherty, got the Man of the Match award, and I think that was down to the sheer amount of shots from Curran he saved - he definitely needs work on his finishing.

Team News

- Sam Oji has signed a new contract that will seem him at the club till December 31st 2016.

- First Team striker, Enda Curran, has returned to training after being out for 4 weeks with an Achilles Tendon injury.

- Our worst fears were realised, star striker Jake Keegan will miss the rest of the season and could be out for 6-7 months with a broken shin.

- Following his Man of the Match performance against Bray Wanderers, Gary Shanahan, was named in the 15th-21st September 2015 Irish Premier Division Team of the Week.

- Colm Horgan will be out for up to ten days with a stubbed toe meaning he will miss the match against Limerick.

- Conor Murphy will also miss the match against Limerick due to his red card in the Sligo game. Galway appealed the ban however the FAI rejected the appeal.

- Galway Boss, Grant Ferguson, has came second in the September 2015 Irish Premier Division Manager of the Month Award.

Misc News

- Shamrock Rovers have won the League of Ireland Cup. They beat Longford who put us out which in my head always redeems us that we would have went up against the winners anyway. A poor excuse I know. Galway was also named the "Biggest Underachievers" of the tournament - one to be proud of lads!

Wow, what a month! I'm dissapointed we are out of the FAI Cup, but as I said, it allows us to focus on the league and hope those that are still in the tournament slip up and allow us to climb the league table. A 66% win rate in the league in September and no defeats is an improvement and some great results. I'm worried that our star striker is out for the season and the start of next, and our second striker is banned for one of the last three matches - all of which are crucial. It's clear we have a striker problem, which hopefully will be remedied by the arrival of Morton Nielson, however the backup strikers need to up their game. If we finished half the chances we had or poorly placed shots, the draws would turn into wins and we would be almost running away with the league. Now I'm getting a feel for the team, I think we will improve and I have a rough idea of what I want in the transfer window. I was pleased with the performances of Gary Shanahan, Jake Keegan, and Conor Murphy - all of whom carried the team at times. I think our chances of a Europa League spot are all but gone and we are destined to just miss out on that, but it gives us something to strive for next year, as I can't see Dundalk losing their grip on that league title so winning that is out of the question - however I haven't give up hope of bringing this team silverware. Here's hoping that the final month and final three games of the season will go our way.

Great thread. Loving the sheer effort put into the presentation - it looks great!

Good luck with the save, man.

October-November 2015

Matches

4-0



Man of the Match: Paul O'Connor

(Markets Field - Attendance: 971)

An exciting match from the start. Ten minutes in and we were already looking strong; a ball into the box from Gary Shanahan went right through the box to the other wing, it was picked up by Tomi Saarelma ho passed it to Enda Curran, but as usual Curran was just wide. After that control went to Limerick who almost scored from a free kick and almost scored immediately after, they also started to hold possession more than I would like, totaling at 60% at one stage. If it wasn't for an in form defence we would have struggled. An indirect free kick in the 22nd minute from Tomi Saarelma was whipped into the box only for Curran to shoot straight at the keeper and deny us another goal. Beautiful play in the 23rd by our wingers almost saw a goal, but Curran failed to take his chances and held up play - definitely not pleased with him. The 26th minute almost saw us conceding an amateur goal as Alex Byrne stopped chasing the ball that was rolling towards the keeper, this allowed Limerick striker, Ross Mann, to break free and almost bury the ball, luckily enough Conor Winn had the ability to stop him. 33 minutes in and we finally conceded a goal, Ian Turner crosses the ball to the back post to allow an unmarked Darragh Rainsford to finish it. A quick counter attack from a corner in the 39th minute almost saw Andrew Connolly equalise for us, but a tackle from Shane Costelloe saw an end to that as he knocked it out for a corner. Straight from the whistle starting the second half we were going all out; a cross from Robin Dempsey almost saw the equaliser but was headed out by Robbie Williams; this was followed by a beautiful corner from Tomi Saarelma which caused panic amongst the Limerick defenders who scrambled to clear the ball. Our fate seemed all but sealed as Limerick's Shane Tracey hammered home a free kick in the 49th minute. At the 60 minute mark I changed the tactics around, a different formation and telling the lads to push up, I also put Shanahan up front just behind the striker, and subbed off Enda Curran who's performance was lackluster to say the least. Another chance came in the 77th minute as Andrew Connolly broke free, but pressure from incoming defenders led to him skying the ball. It was game over by the 81st minute as a cross to the back post by Mann was finished by Turner to take the scoreline to 3-0. The embarrassment continued three minutes later as we were simply outplayed which allowed Paul O'Connor to bury the ball to take it to 4-0. I feel like I'm repeating myself but we almost got a consolation goal from Shanahan, but as Connolly experienced before, the defender's pressure caused Gary to take a terrible shot and knock the ball into the stands. This Limerick team that we beat 3-2 only about a month ago had our number this time around. The loss kept Limerick up and now means that we need to win both our last two matches and Cork and Bohemians to lose theirs if e want to qualify for Europe - something that is highly unlikely to happen, a win today would have increased those chances. The supporters were not pleased, and neither was I, and I let the team know that.

1-1



Man of the Match: Stephen Maher

(Eamonn Deacy Park - Attendance: 1,254)

I decided to change things up for this match and go for a 4-4-1-1 formation, based on advice from the backroom staff and my own thought; we only really have one decent striker so I opted for an attacking centre midfielder and dropped my other to attacking wingers back. Hopefully this ill bring more success with more men in the middle of the pitch and a better link up between midfield and the front line. The new formation worked as we dominated the early match. An early goal proved this as a cross from Marc Ludden almost went in but the Drogheda keeper, Michael Schlingermann, parried it away only for Enda Curran to finish it to put us a goal ahead just five minutes in - first shot, first goal. The match was rather quiet after that, our next big chance game in the 19th minute from a corner but neither Curran or Sam Oji could finish it. The 21st minute led to disaster as Drogheda passed it quickly around the team and slotted in a goal to equalise - Tiarnán Mulvenna was the scorer for Drogheda. The 26th minute almost seen us go ahead again after a chip through ball saw Curran go through on goal, but the defenders caught up and he made a stupid shot which the keeper saved with ease. The rest of the match was full of near chances for both sides, with Drogheda having that slight edge over us. I decided to push the players forward for the last 20 minutes. An 84th minute switch between the wings followed by a cross into the box see Curran almost clinch the victory but his header hit the cross - once again his terrible terrible finishing denies us the 3 points. Both sides became very sloppy towards the end, obviously looking for that final goal - however it was to no avail. Yet again poor finishing has cost us the win, and Curran is the one to blame in my eyes. All hope of an end of season miracle with us qualifying for Europe is well and truly gone.

4-0



Man of the Match: Simon Madden

(Tallaght Stadium - Attendance: 3,657)

We haven't lost against Shamrock all season, hopefully that isn't about to change. Shamrock have Damien Duff on the right wing, someone I didn't even know they had. It took just 15 minutes for Shamrock to break us down; Damien Duff whipped the ball in from a corner, and Simon Madden finished it off to put Shamrock ahead. Our first shot came from a misplaced cross from Tomi Saarelma that just went over. A failed corner led to a cross back into the box to the back post to Alex Byrne who finished the ball - unfortunately for us it was offside. Enda Curran was subbed off at half time for Andrew Connolly, hopefully he can do something for us because Curran couldn't finish his dinner. Five minutes into the second half and another Damien Duff corner saw Sam Byrne score for Shamrock - I think defending set pieces will be a must for next season. Adam Quirke had to be subbed off in the 70th minute due to a damaged heel, he was replaced by Conor Melody. Within a minute after the match was over as a cross from Simon Madden was received by Brandon Miele who put the ball in the back of the net. Ten minutes later another Simon Madden cross finished by Mikey Drennan completely buried us. The fans were devastated by the result, and rightfully so. A terrible end to the season, hopefully things can only get better next year.

Team News

- Galway Under-19s midfielder, Ian Collins, has been called up to play for the Ireland Under-19s squad in their Under-19s European Championship Qualifier matches against Israel, Andorra, and Croatia on the 7th, 9th, and 11th of October respectively in Croatia. The team wishes Ian all the best in his first international matches. Ian came on as a late sub in the first match against Israel for 12 minutes and had little time to make an impact. In the second game against Andorra, Collins was rated highly for his performance - and a serious contender for Man of the Match0 - managing to pick up and assists and make multiple key plays. The final match against Croatia, Ian was on the bench and never came on - this was surprising after his previous performance but may have been due to fitness after playing in the first two games. The Irish Under-19s are now through to the Second Qualifying Round.

- The Galway board has decreased the percentage of transfer revenue able to be retained to 0%.

- Fitness Coach, Adrian Craddock, and Head Physio, Emmett Hartigan, have signed new deals that will keep them at the club for another year.

- Galway striker, Enda Curren, and youth prospect, Antaine O'Laoi, have both signed new contracts to keep the at the club till the end of 2016. Star player, Jake Keegan, has also signed a new deal that will see him at the club until the end of 2017.

- Conor Murphy's match ban from all FAI competitions has been extended from one match ban to two. Galway appealed the extension but it was rejected by the FAI. This means he will be out for the rest of the season.

- Paul Sinnott has been injured in training lifting weights. He will be sidelined for up to five weeks with a strained stomach muscle. This means he will miss the final match of the season against Shamrock Rovers.

- Adam Quirke has injured his heel and will be out for up to two weeks.

- Big congratulations to Jake Keegan who won the 2015 Irish Premier Division Golden Boot with 19 goals in 28 appearances, and was a part of the 2015 Irish Premier Division Team of the Year.

- Ian Collins has been called up by the Ireland Under-19s squad for their next round of qualifiers.

Misc News

- Dundalk retained the Irish Premier Division title with just a single point between them and Derry City.

- Longford Town won the FAI Cup, defeating St Pat's Atheltic 1-0.

End of Season

Final Irish Premier Division Table

Galway First Team - End of 2015 Season

Galway End of Season Awards Show

Galway Season Review

Galway Finances - End of 2015 Season

FAI 2015 Competition Outcomes

Irish Premier Division - Dundalk

Irish First Division - Wexford Youths

FAI Cup - Longford Town

League of Ireland Cup - Shamrock Rovers

Promoted to Irish Premier Division - Wexford Youths and Finn Harps

Relegated from Irish Premier Division - Drogheda United and Bray Wanderers

As I looked out on to the stadium at the end of an average season I had mixed emotions. While I didn't meet the target of European football, for the team's first year in the Irish Premier Division since being reformed, we did well to come 6th and get further in the FAI Cup than before. Hopefully next season we can really push on and fight for Europe. I have a feel for the team now and I think I know what I need to do to improve the team - a new striker is top of the shopping list, and perhaps a few players to beef up the defence and midfield, maybe even a new backup keeper. I'm optimistic for the new season, and while only half the team are confident in fighting for European football, I think the whole team will quickly jump on board with my ambitions. The one real obstacle that stands in the way of my dreams at this club is the faltering finances - something that could mean we will have to sell our best player, Jake Keegan. Hopefully it doesn't have to come to that, he's vital to the team. I also wonder if I'll be standing here as Galway manager this team next year - the failure to meet targets and a lack of money could be the force to bring the guillotine down on my tenure as Galway manager. Now for a few more weeks of training then a holiday - this is all tougher than I thought, but we can do this.

Great thread. Loving the sheer effort put into the presentation - it looks great!

Good luck with the save, man.

Thanks Kopite!

I was worrying the presentation was too much.

Great read! I've personally always found the Irish Prem hard to manage in..

Really enjoying the presentation of this. Good luck at Galway

More colours than a rainbow.

Great read! I've personally always found the Irish Prem hard to manage in..

Thanks Lloyd! This is my first time. It's hasn't been bad so far but I still feel it's a typical lower league where any team can win it.

Really enjoying the presentation of this. Good luck at Galway

I still feel like the presentation is too much. Thanks Chivers!

More colours than a rainbow.

Is it too much Nobby?

Personally I would cut down a bit on the colour or at least choose another green, as that bright one is kind of hard on the (=my) eyes. Other than that, top notch.

Is it too much Nobby?

It is when done so often. You lose all it's effect.