Man-of-the-match John O'Shea, who looked the sprightliest of all the Premiership players, was also mindful of the warrant of a good performance. 'We needed a strong performance - not just for us and the six points we wanted to achieve, but for the fans too. They have been an extra man this last week,' explained the United defender.
'The Doc came good again and a number of others too. It was a solid team effort and well done to the management and squad,' said O'Shea. 'We're normally on holidays now, so this win will keep us in the hunt when August and September comes around. We'll be fresh again in the autumn.'
Manager Brian Kerr was understandably elated, but mournful of the workload ahead. 'I am delighted for the players. It has been a lot of hard work over the past few weeks and tonight was hard individually on them and collectively.'
The Irish boss added, 'It's just rewards for a smashing team effort. I though the second half performance was slightly better - in that we controlled matters, had the few chances and limited their attacks.'