Aidan Keena's injury time penalty earns St Pats a point at Waterford

ALL SQUARE: Tommy Lonergan in action against Sean Hoare. Pic: Seb Daly/Sportsfile.

Waterford 1 St Pats 1

Waterford were cruelly denied all three points deep into stoppage time as Aidan Keena’s injury time penalty earned St Patrick’s Athletic a dramatic 1-1 draw in an entertaining clash at the RSC.

In front of an attendance of 2,533, the Blues looked set to record a deserved victory after Conan Noonan’s first-half strike separated the sides, only for the visitors to snatch a share of the spoils with virtually the last kick of the game.

The hosts started brightly and almost took the lead after just eight minutes. A flowing move saw the ball worked out to Jordan Houston on the right flank and his excellent cross picked out Jorgen Voilas in the centre. The forward powered a header towards goal, but St Pat’s goalkeeper Joseph Anang produced an outstanding flying save to tip the effort away.

The visitors responded almost immediately. Defender Joe Redmond surged forward from the back before releasing Kian Leavy into space down the right. With only Stephen McMullan to beat, Leavy dragged his shot wide of the far post. Leavy remained a constant threat and soon cut inside from the left before forcing McMullan into a smart near post save.

St Pat’s continued to create opportunities and should have gone ahead on 28 minutes when Leavy again found space, threading a pass through for Ryan Edmondson, but the striker failed to hit the target with his left-footed effort.

A major talking point arrived just after the half-hour mark. Referee Rob Hennessy initially pointed to the penalty spot after Voilas went down under a challenge from Luke Turner inside the box. However, following discussions with assistant referee Emmett Dynan, the decision was overturned and Voilas was instead shown a yellow card for simulation.

Waterford quickly put that disappointment behind them and broke the deadlock five minutes before half-time. Hayden Cann delivered an inviting cross from the left, with Tommy Lonergan brilliantly hooking the ball back into the danger area. Noonan reacted quickest and his effort took a deflection off James Brown on its way beyond Anang and into the net.

The Saints nearly found an equaliser before the break when Turner’s cross located Edmondson inside the area, but his header drifted narrowly over the crossbar.

Waterford started the second half on the front foot and almost doubled their lead on 47 minutes. Noonan’s corner reached Benny Couto at the back post and his powerful strike looked destined for the top corner before Anang produced another excellent save.

The home side felt aggrieved again on 57 minutes when television replays appeared to show Sean Hoare stamping on Lonergan, but referee Hennessy and his officials took no action.

Waterford continued to push for a second goal. Will Johnson volleyed narrowly wide before Lonergan headed over from another dangerous Noonan corner. Lonergan was heavily involved and later tested Anang with a low strike after being played through by Voilas.

St Pat’s gradually grew into the contest during the closing stages. Keena delivered an excellent corner for Redmond, whose header drifted just wide, before the defender forced a fine save from McMullan with a powerful effort from distance.

With Waterford seemingly on course for victory, heartbreak arrived deep into stoppage time. In the fifth minute of added time, a scramble inside the penalty area ended with Hayden Cann bringing down Keena. The striker stepped up and calmly converted the resulting penalty, sending McMullan the wrong way and ensuring the points were shared.

Waterford: McMullan; Houston, Cann, Mahon, Couto; Voilas, Johnson, Glenfield, Noonan (Coyle 89); Amond (McMenamy 82), Lonergan.

St Patrick’s Athletic: Anang; Brown (Nugent 77), Hoare, Redmond, Turner (Forrester 69); Keena, Lennon, Palmer (Baggley 22), Edmondson (Rooney 77); Leavy, McClelland (Breslin 46).

Referee: Rob Hennessy.