Top Mayo club set for FAI Junior Cup showdown with Salthill Devon

Castlebar Celtic are back in the FAI Junior Cup hunt after winning their appeal to overturn a 3-0 defeat to Waterford’s Villa FC and a long-awaited clash with Salthill Devon now awaits.

Stevie Gavin’s side looked to have exited the competition at the last 16 stage after a 3-0 loss to the Waterford side, but an administrative error during the registration process for new signings from Villa FC has helped to grant the Hoops a lifeline.

A successful appeal and re-appeal has handed the Mayo Super League champions a second chance, setting up a mouth-watering quarter-final tie with Salthill Devon.

The Galway outfit, sitting atop the Premier Division, have had this fixture circled for some time. Last season’s controversial defeat to Celtic, settled by a hotly disputed offside goal captured in a widely shared video, has not been forgotten in the Salthill camp.

Who will champing at the bit to get their own back on a Celtic side who are yet to concede in their opening four games in the Elverys Sports Super League.

Salthill Devon are yet to lose after 13 games in the Galway top tier and sit five points clear of second place Mervue United.

Former League of Ireland players Mick Lee, Darren Collins and Marc Ludden are among the familiar names driving the Salthill cause, and there’s no shortage of motivation for them ahead of the fixture.

Celtic possess home advantage, with the game kicking off at 2 p.m.

The stakes are high, with a semi-final spot against Wexford’s North End United on the line.

Fate has already drawn Celtic and North End together in the senior FAI Cup this May, but Gavin’s men will be keen to ensure that meeting goes ahead with the added momentum of a Junior Cup semi-final in their back pocket.