A turbulent week in the history of Galway WFC finished with a disappointing 1-0 loss away to ninth-placed Cork City in the Women’s National League on Saturday.
While the futures of players and staff remain in jeopardy with the Galway WFC board not seeking to renew their license next year - and statements from Galway United and the Galway FA doing little to provide any certainty - Galway WFC manager Alan Murphy stopped short of blaming the off-field upheaval for the unexpected loss. ?
“We can’t turn around and say the loss last week was directly caused by the uncertainty. I can’t say it many times this season, but we didn’t perform [on Saturday]," he says.
"?We started okay in the game, and then we missed a penalty, and that might have knocked us a bit. The longer it went on, the longer they were left in the game. Cork have improved and they deserved something out of the game.”
?Nonetheless, the manager concedes the off-field situation has been "difficult" for his squad.
“It has been difficult on everyone in terms of the uncertainty that is there. Hopefully it will get put to bed sooner rather than later. But for the girls themselves, they want to know a plan for next season and it is a topic among them.”?
As a result a somewhat overlooked topic had been a big derby win in Sligo the previous Saturday, something Murphy was happy to reflect on.
“The Sligo game was a really good performance. We went behind twice in the game, but the girls showed patience, stuck to the plan, and we were convincing winners in the end.”
Galway WFC will hope to replicate these levels when they entertain UCD Waves on Saturday October 1 in Eamon Deacy Park at 2pm. However, another week off and the frequent interruptions to the schedule are providing yet another external challenge to the squad according to Murphy.
“We are coming towards the end of the season and it’s not ideal to be stopping and starting, especially where we are at the moment."
Nonetheless opportunities and targets still exist for the squad in the run-in. Having given Hannah Glynn her debut in Sligo a fortnight ago, Murphy is eyeing up the potential to give more local talent their first shot at senior level.
“We are definitely looking at giving some girls an opportunity over the next while when the team is strong.”
The hope will be that this opportunity for Galway women will be continue to exist beyond the run-in of the 2022 season.
