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Finn Harps FC 2 - 0 Waterford United
Chris McNulty Reports from Finn Park 18th June 2005

Two first half goals from the in-form Kevin McHugh and Nigerian Eloka 'Luca' Asokuh gave Finn Harps their second win of the season in Finn Park on Saturday night.

With Shamrock Rovers defeating Shelbourne in the big Dublin derby the previous evening and with talk of some disgruntled Harps supporters planning a protest prior to the kick-off, the pressure was mounting on Felix Healy’s side.

However the boys in Blue responded in the best possible way.

On 13 minutes ace marksman Kevin Mc Hugh found the corner of the net with a well struck effort from the edge of the box giving Holden no chance.

As the first half wore on, Harps missed several chances – strikers Breen and Mc Hugh causing all sorts of problems for the United rearguard, doing everything but find the target. Mc Hugh had an effort tipped wide by Holden minutes before the break. From the resulting corner, Paddy Mc Grenaghan picked the ball up before picking out the unmarked Elaka Asokhu, the big Nigerian making no mistake from 8 yards out.

Kevin McHugh

Eloka Asokuh

The second half was again a case of Harps failing to convert chances. It wasn’t all one way traffic however and Waterford certainly showed that at times going forward they can cause all sorts of difficulty for the opposition, but when the opposition comes in the form of Gavin Cullen, the big Buncrana man rarely loses out these days and again on Saturday night he showed why he is so highly rated by the Finn Park faithful, pulling off some great saves in the second period.

With the game wrapped up, things turned sour as Waterford player-boss Alan Reynolds was dismissed for striking out at Chris Breen as the young Stranorlar man went to shake hands with Reynolds.

Both teams can be thankful that something serious didn’t develop in the melee that ensued as the Finn Park security staff were quick off the mark to calm the situation somewhat.

It was a great result for the Donegal side, and with a massive 'six pointer' against bottom of the table Shamrock Rovers beckoning next weekend, it will could yet prove to be one of the most important wins of the season.

Finn Harps: Cullen, McGowan, Minnock, Boyle, Asokuh, Funston (Cowan, 88), Capper (Crossan, 59), McGrenaghan, Gorman, Breen, McHugh.

Waterford United: Holden, Andrews (Reynodls, 58), Frost, Breen (Browne, 63), Purcell, Grant, Yelverton (Heffernan, 55), Mulcahy, Sullivan, Bruton, Waters.

Referee: D. Hancock (Dublin)