As Finn Harps prepare to face Limerick FC tonight in the first leg of the promotion-relegation play-off final at Finn Park, it is an apt time to remember their last tussle on this stage.
It was in 2015, Ollie Horgan’s second year as Harps manager. Harps had been beaten to the First Division title by Wexford.
Harps got the better of UCD in the play-off semi-final and Limerick, whose late surge for safety fell just short, lay in wait.
What came next was one of the most famous moments in the history of Finn Harps:
Limerick held sway after the first leg at the Markets Field. Killybegs native Shaun Kelly hit the only goal of the game to give the Shannonsiders an ever-so-slight edge. It was a cracking strike by the Donegal man, too …
Just 15 minutes into the return game, before a packed Finn Park, Michael Funston pounced on an error in the Limerick defence to put Harps ahead on the night and level in the tie …
Penalties loomed with the sides still inseparable as Finn Harps launched one final attack. Damien McNulty attempted to pick out BJ Banda with a cross from the right. The crowd on the Town End seemed to swat in unison as the ball went back towards McNulty, who delivered into the area again.
This time, as Banda rose, time momentarily stood still before, as Eric White, watching for BBC Radio Foyle, gasped: ‘An explosion of euphoria around Finn Park’ …
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