Waterford FC retain Premier Division status for 2026 after defeating Bray Wanderers 2-1. The winning goal came from substitute Sam Glenfield who left Bray hearts broken.

Bray Wanderers 1

Waterford FC 2

The match would begin cagey and frantic with both sides knowing what’s at stake, an early break came through a knock for James Olayinka which would allow for both sides to gain their composure.

Padraig Amond would have the games opening effort from a deep cross by Ryan Burke, his header flashed just wide of the post.

Bray would open the scoring in the 8th minute when a through ball played behind the Waterford defence wasn’t dealt with and Conor Knight was on hand to arrow it into the bottom left corner past Stephen McMullan in the Waterford goal.

The Wanderers would continue to look dangerous on the counter attack with a direct approach after scoring with Cian Curtis the focal point up top.

Conan Noonan came close to an equalizer in the 16th minute when his strike from inside the box was deflected by the head of a Bray defender after intricate play.

Pressure would continue to mount and in the 20th minute Thomas Lonergan would have a header inside the Bray box, this time James Corcoran was able to parry the ball before catching it on the second attempt. Shortly after in the 24th minute Corcoran would produce another fine stop, this time on Amond from a knock down in the box.

The equalizer would come just before the half hour mark for Waterford when a short corner found Ryan Burke whose cute backheel sent Conan Noonan through on the left hand side of the box, Noonan with space in front of him curled his shot past James Corcoran.

 

Waterford after their equalizer started to dominate proceedings with Olayinka and Kyle White finding joy down the left hand side, Bray showed signs they were still in the game when Alain Kizenga’s central run and slide through ball found the feet of Cian Curtis who tested McMullan.

Waterford continued to dominate to begin the second half and in the 47th minute Noonan would connect on the end of a cross from Lonergan and had his effort from an acute angle deflected wide. In the 53rd minute another defensive mishap would benefit Bray, Cian Curtis intercepted the ball down the left flank before cutting it back to Justin Ferizaj who had his attempt snuffed out by Darragh Leahy.

Substitute Billy O’Neill’s first involvement on the pitch would be to win a dangerous free kick and force referee Kevin O’Sullivan to produce a yellow card for Kyle White, O’Neill  would then call McMullan into action for the first time this half to punch wide on the subsequent free kick.

Waterford’s pressure would result in the game winning goal from substitute Sam Glenfield fifteen minutes from time who surged through midfield taking on multiple Bray Wanderers players before firing a low and firm strike into the bottom left corner.

The aforementioned Billy O’Neill continued to impress for Bray, his strike from the top of the box looked like it was destined for the top corner before being expertly parried away by the Waterford net minder.

Tension boiled over in the three minutes of stoppage time added with Harvey Warren sent off for Bray after a nasty challenge, Waterford substitute Navajor Bakboord would receive his marching orders as well for his reaction.

Sam Glenfield ends as the hero for Waterford who secured their 2026 Premier Division status seeing out the final minutes of stoppage time comfortably. For Bray Wanderers heartbreak personified with consecutive Play-Off defeats in Dublin for the Seagulls.

 

 

Man of the Match: Conan Noonan

Waterford’s chief creator stole the plaudits for the blues with his performance on the night. Noonan would score a crucial equaliser to calm nerves in the Waterford ranks and lead by example retaining possession for his side on a number of occasions.

Bray Wanderers(4-1-3-2): James Corcoran, Alain Kizenga, Kilian Cantwell, Harvey Warren, Max Murphy, Rhys Bartley, Conor Knight, Justin Ferizaj, Sean Brennan, Cian Curtis, Cian Doyle Subs: Billy O’Neill for Conor Knight (57′), Rhys Knight for Rhys Bartley (75′), Richard Ferizaj for Alain Kizenga, Guillermo Almirall for Sean Brennan (Both 84′)

Waterford FC(4-4-2): Stephen McMullan, Ryan Burke, Grant Horton, Darragh Leahy, Kyle White, James Olayinka, Conan Noonan, Dean McMenamy, Matthew Smith, Thomas Lonergan, Padraig Amond Subs: Sam Glenfield for Dean McNenamy (60′), Navajo Bakboord for Matthew Smith (76′), Muhammadu Faal for Thomas Lonergan (84th)

Referee: Kevin O’Sullivan

Attendance: 3,648