The magic of the cup has heaped enormous pressure on St Patrick’s Athletic to deny Shamrock Rovers a fifth league title in six seasons at Richmond Park on Friday.
The stars seemed to be aligned for an all-Dublin FAI Cup decider between St Pat’s and Rovers on November 9th. Demand for tickets to pack the Aviva Stadium was heating up.
There would be subplots galore: Stephen Bradley versus Stephen Kenny, a possible future Republic of Ireland manager versus the last one. Mason Melia versus Michael Noonan, two teenage strikers tipped for superstardom.
It would have been Melia’s final game for St Pat’s before his record-breaking move to Tottenham Hotspur in January.
The reward for beating Rovers
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