It just about summed up UCD's discouraging season that it was Home Farm/Everton who went away disappointed at not making the FAI Cup quarterfinals at Belfield. The first-division side controlled the game for long spells, before an unsurprisingly small crowd of some 250, and will be annoyed with themselves that they have to play again at Whitehall tomorrow night.

There was little to cheer about in a lifeless first half with Home Farm creating the notably few strikes on goal. The best of those was after 10 minutes. A foul by UCD skipper Aidan Lynch on Stuart Byrne 20 yards from goal was almost punished as Graham Doyle cracked a direct free-kick off the left-hand upright.

Home Farm had further half chances, Byrne curling a shot wide of a post while Seamus Kelly had to punch clear a header from Brendan Place from Stephen Gifford's 24th minute corner.

Save for those, the main incident of the first half involved a double injury to Damien Maher of Home Farm and UCD's Ciaran Kavanagh, who clashed heads after 26 minutes, and both had to be removed to hospital with cuts.

The game cried out for a goal and at least that call was answered within five minutes of the restart, though it was harsh that it should come against Home Farm. They did, however, contribute to it when Owen Heary and Barry Ferguson collided as they came across to tackle Robert Griffin, who duly skipped away down the left touchline before picking out John Martin with a low cross and he calmly slid the ball under Paul Whelan with his left foot.

Having fallen behind, Home Farm took a hold on the game and deservedly equalised 12 minutes from time with a tremendous goal from Mark Gill. He controlled substitute Robbie Farrell's low cross and turned superbly, before shooting into the bottom righthand corner of the net from 16 yards.

"I don't think home or away is any advantage when the teams are so close and you don't have much support," said UCD manager Dermot Keely.

UCD: Kelly; McLaughlin, Lynch, Palmer, Fitzgerald; Bennis, Kavanagh, McDonnell, O'Byrne; Griffin, Kilmurray. Subs: J Martin for Kavanagh (inj, 29 mins.), C Martyn for Kilmurray (84 mins).

HOME FARM/EVERTON: Whelan; Gifford, Maher, Place, Keenan; Heary, Doyle, Ferguson, S Byrne; Gill, Moore. Subs: Kavanagh for Maher (inj, 27 mins.), Farrell for Moore (62 mins.).

Referee: P Whelan (Dublin).