Drogheda United assistant manager Kevin Doherty believes his side delivered a ‘near perfect’ performance after they defeated Cabinteely 5-1 in the second leg of the First Division play-off semi-final, advancing 6-2 on aggregate. The Drogs, who had c
Drogheda United assistant manager Kevin Doherty believes his side delivered a ‘near perfect’ performance after they defeated Cabinteely 5-1 in the second leg of the First Division play-off semi-final, advancing 6-2 on aggregate. The Drogs, who had come from behind to earn a draw last week at Stradbrook Road, scored three times in five second-half minutes to take the tie away from Cabinteely much to Doherty’s delight. “I think it was as close to a perfect performance as you can get,” Doherty explained post-match. “We scored five times tonight and it could’ve been even more. “The only minor negative was the goal we conceded but Cabo are a very good side that will create chances against anyone. “We were excellent throughout but we won’t be getting carried away. It’s a massive task for us over the next week but we’ve done tremendously well to get to this position.” Despite having been outplayed first-half, Cabo drew level on the night and in the tie when Kieran Marty Waters headed home from close range but Doherty maintains that he had no doubt that his players would respond positively to the setback. “We were really hoping to get that second goal before half-time because we were well on top. I think had we played another five minutes then we probably would’ve gotten it. “You have to give great credit to Cabinteely, they changed a few things at the break and got the equaliser but our reaction from there was incredible. “We blew them away.” Doherty, a former defender himself, reserved special praise for hat-trick hero Luke McNally who has made quite the impact since joining the club on loan from St Patrick’s Athletic. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a centre-back score a hat-trick before! That’s nine goals for him this season, an incredible return. “He had his hands full defensively with Kieran Marty Waters but to have kept him relatively quiet and then make that impact in attack shows the kind of quality he has.” It’s a short turnaround for the Boynesiders who will host Finn Harps at United Park on Monday before travelling to Ballybofey for the second leg on Friday with Doherty adamant that they will need to raise their game even further to advance. “Ideally we would have a week to prepare but that’s not the case and I’m sure Finn Harps rested a few players this evening. “They’re a really strong, physical side full of experience and we’ll need to match their fight and commitment before we can start playing our football against them. “As good as we were tonight, we’ll need to be so much better if we’re to beat them.”
