Bray W 3 St Patricks A 3:A BRILLIANT double strike by veteran striker Jason Byrne enabled Bray Wanderers to snatch a deserved share of the spoils against still unbeaten St Patrick's Athletic in a six-goal thriller at the Carlisle Grounds last night.

Byrne, who was on target late in the first half, scored his 10th league goal of the season with a dramatic late equaliser as Bray made it five matches unbeaten.

Darren Quigley denied the Inchicore men with some superb goalkeeping in the first half. He saved well from Christy Fagan and John Russell before heroically blocking a shot from Seán O’Connor at point-blank range.

But Bray took the lead on 36 minutes when John Mulroy’s clearance allowed Marty Waters to race clear down the left and fire in a perfect low cross which Byrne calmly swept home from close range.

St Pat’s were deservedly level after 44 minutes when Fagan shot home from 16 yards after Pierce Sweeney failed to clear a Ger O’Brien cross from the right.

Bray were back in front on 59 minutes when Byrne found Seán Houston on the right and his clever low cross was expertly blasted home on the turn from 22 yards by Mulroy.

The Saints were level again on 66 minutes when a quick cross by Russell was fired home at the near post by Fagan and St Pat’s took the lead for the first time on 72 minutes when a Greg Bolger cross fell kindly for John Russell to fire home a brilliant snap-shot from 25 yards. But Byrne had the last word in the third minute of added time when he fired home from a Waters’s cross at the far post.

BRAY WANDERERS: Quigley; Webster, D O’Connor, Sweeney, Massey (A Bolger 89); Hanlon (Knight 82), Zambra, Mulroy, Houston (Mitchell 88), Waters; Byrne.

St Patrick’s Athletic: Clarke; O’Brien, Kenna, Browne, Bermingham; Forrester, Bolger, Russell, O’Connor (Carroll 79)); Fagan, J.Kelly (Daly 65).

Referee: Richie Winter (Wicklow).