FORMER LEAGUE OF IRELAND MIDFIELDER Gavan Holohan helped his current club Grimsby Town topple Premier League side Southampton the FA Cup this week. Holohan (31) scored two penalties against the Saints in the 2-1 win at St Mary’s.
Holohan, who previously played for the likes of Drogheda United, Cork City, Galway United and Waterford FC brace ensured safe passage to the next round of the FA Cup.
The win means that Grimsby have now become the first club in FA Cup history to eliminate five teams from a higher division than them in a single campaign.
The League 2 side have knocked out Plymouth Argyle, Cambridge United, Burton Albion and Luton Town in their earlier rounds.
They will now face another Premier League side in Brighton & Hove Albion in the sixth round.
Gavan Holohan’s second penalty of the night was an absolute peach!🇮🇪pic.twitter.com/mPCVguvRG8
— Rep of Ireland Player Tracker (@reptracker) March 1, 2023
A drab first half sprang into life when VAR spotted a handball close to the end of the first half.
Southampton's Brazilian Lyanco was adjudged to have handled Joshua Emmanuel's cross.
Holohan stepped up and sent Southampton's Alex McCarthy the wrong way from the spot. The first goal sent the travelling Grimsby supporters into raptures.
Things would go from good to great for the fourth division side after the restart.
Duje Caleta-Car, the other Southampton defender slapped Grimsby's Danilo Orsi in the back inside the 18-yard box, which promoted the ref to give another penalty.
Holohan repeated his first half trick and sent the ball past McCarty into the left corner of his goal.
Caleta-Car made slight amends for his stupidity and pulled one back from a corner 15 minutes later, but Grimsby and Holohan held to record a famous night for their football club.
"For players at our level, you can only dream of days like this,"said Holohan after the game.
The fans that we brought today, on a Wednesday night, it was just an unbelievable turnout. I'm glad for them, all the players, the staff, everyone involved with the club."
Grimsby's manager Paul Hurst told BBC Radio 5 Live, "I'm in shock, I'm so delighted for the owners and the incredible away support."
They deserve to have maybe more celebrations than they’ll probably get.
"A lot of the group are still here that enjoyed the experience of promotion and getting back to the Football League.
"They did enjoy it in the dressing room, but looking around at a few of the faces, it looked as though they were in shock, and some were a bit tired!
"I’m just pleased for them, because it’s a memory for them, a special night for the owners and the supporters and they’ll go down in history because of the way we got to the quarterfinals.”
💬 "For players at our level, you can only dream of days like this. The fans that we brought today, on a Wednesday night, it was just an unbelievable turnout. I'm glad for them, all the players, the staff, everyone involved with the club." - Gavan Holohan
🐟 @OfficialGTFC pic.twitter.com/vRe9tF9vky— ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 1, 2023
FA Cup quarter-final draw:
Manchester City v Burnley
Manchester United v Fulham
Brighton and Hove Albion v Grimsby Town
Sheffield United v Blackburn Rovers
