Waterford Crystal

Waterford  2  Athlone Town  1

League of Ireland First Division

When you think of Irish Club Football, it's easy to let your thoughts drift towards the Shamrock Rovers side that made the headlines in the late Seventies and early Eighties. They certainly set their stall out to become a major player in European football under the Kilcoyne family regime.

Some would argue as well that the current Dundalk side that has won three titles in a row, along with a run in the Europa League that resulted in the group stages being reached, are up there as well, and possibly even on the verge of eclipsing Rovers as the best club team the emerald isle has produced. They certainly have cash in the bank to build.

However, if you go back to the late Sixties and early Seventies, one team dominated Irish domestic football and that was Waterford FC. Numerous league titles, Cup wins and glory days in Europe playing the likes of Celtic and Manchester United were par for the course. Life at Kilcohan Park was good, but leaner times would then lead to bad times.

A name change with the suffix 'United' being added took place in 1982, and the club rehoused to the newly built Regional Sports Centre (RSC) on the outskirts of town, away from Kilcohan which still stands as a Greyhound Stadium. Thrice they went down but came back up again, in 1990, 1998 and 2003.

A further relegation to the First Division took place in 2007, and since then it's been pretty much doom and gloom. I visited two years ago to see a game against Galway and I doubt there were many more than 300 in the ground. The future was looking pretty bleak with talk of serious financial concerns.

However, a new season saw a new owner in the shape of former Swindon Town Chairman Lee Power, and a reversion back to the original name of Waterford FC. Hope sprang eternal, with a new management team and a better financial footing, they were installed as one of the favourites to take the title and promotion to the level where by rights, they should be competing if history and size of the town is anything to go by.

Crowds are flocking back to to the RSC, over 1600 were at last weeks game against Cobh Ramblers, while tonight's game against an Athlone Town side that have been rumoured to be in financial straights themselves, attracted 1932 through the turnstiles. I'm not sure when Waterford last saw gates of this size, but probably not regularly since the heady days when honours were being competed for.

The drive from Cork was a steady hour and forty five minutes, and no trip to Waterford is the same without a trip round the impressive Waterford Crystal factory. Being Good Friday it was a dry day in the Republic, not a lager could be had anywhere, and to be fair it wasn't easy finding anywhere open for food. Parking at the RSC was fine given the plethora of Industrial and Retail outlets nearby that had closed for the day, and what struck me upon sitting in the spacious main stand was the atmosphere and the buzz around the club. It does feel as though the good times may be returning to Port Lairge in a footballing sense.

A Packed Main Stand

Waterford played some nice, incisive football but visiting Athlone after a stuttering start, also started to get into their rhythm, and while not a spectacular half of football, it was absorbing and not without quality.

Waterford took the lead just after the interval when Mark O'Sullivan forced the ball over the line, and then a long ball over the top just after the hour saw O'Sullivan out muscle the centre half and slot the ball past the visiting goalkeeper. It was a neat finish considering the front man looked to have been fouled and was heading for the deck when he made contact with the ball.

Christophe Rodrigues pulled a goal back almost moments later with a well placed shot, and then it looked like disaster for Waterford when they gave away a penalty five minutes later, but Connor Barry's effort was saved by Matthew Connor. Waterford hung on and cemented their place at the top of the league, and as we left, the singing from the main stand at the RSC could be heard well after the final whistle.

The journey back to Cork was devoid of any aggravation, the roads were empty (just like the pubs), but our fridge in the hotel room was well stocked. It had been a long old day, but a great one all the same.

There is talk that this is the last year of the Good Friday alcohol ban, it might also be the last year of the First Division for Waterford FC. They'll be celebrating with a drink no doubt. on both counts, in a carefully crafted crystal glass mind........

Looking Out Across The RSC