Bohemians 0 Sligo Rovers 3:EOIN DOYLE came off the bench to score twice inside eight minutes to ensure his former club wouldn't retain their title without kicking a ball last night. The brace brought Doyle's tally to 20 for the league season, beating the Sligo Rovers' club record set in their title winning season of 1937.
While champions Shamrock Rovers apparently endured a somewhat bumpy landing at Dublin airport on their return from their Europa League clash in Thessalonika, second in the table Sligo belied their poor display in the opening 45 minutes to win this game at a canter in the second half.
They thus narrow the gap on their Dublin rivals to just one point, putting it up to Michael O’Neill’s side ahead of their trip to UCD on Monday night.
For Bohemians, their biggest defeat of the season at Dalymount was a sad way to end their home fixtures, particularly so amid great uncertainty surrounding the future of the club in the close season ahead as their serious financial woes are likely to come to a head.
With six changes in their starting 11 from the side that won the FAI Cup semi-final here last Sunday, Sligo appeared they might have already turned their focus on their third successive FAI Cup final, and retaining that trophy.
Further credence was given to that notion as Bohemians dominated the first half. Striker Christy Fagan’s hard running, determination, and no little skill, continually troubled Sligo and he snuffed out the first opening on nine minutes when controlling Anto Flood’s flick to turn and shoot narrowly wide.
On 21 minutes it was livewire Fagan again who was central to the action. His pass unhinged the Sligo defence, the pity was that Stephen Traynor wasn’t alert enough to it.
Traynor was pivotal, though, as Bohemians should have taken the lead on 24 minutes. A flowing, six-pass move also involving Ger O’Brien and Stephen Hurley saw Traynor thread Flood in on goal. Brendan Clarke was promptly off his line to make a terrific save with his feet.
Bohemians were now running the game and veteran Ollie Cahill warmed Clarke’s hands from all of 30 yards before the irrepressible Fagan volleyed wide.
That Bohemians trooped off not in front at the break mocked much of the 45 minutes we’d seen. But that changed, and utterly so, in the second half. There was far more purpose to Sligo from the restart and they ought to have been ahead six minutes in.
An unfortunate slip by Chris Forrester, named Bohemians Young Player of the Year before the game, gifted Sligo’s Alan Kirby possession. Joseph Ndo took it on to put Matthew Blinkhorn clean through on goal. But Barry Murphy outwitted the striker to get down well and save the flicked shot.
Cue Doyle’s introduction on 61 minutes for Kirby. Two minutes later Sligo were ahead as Doyle punished a mistake by Liam Burns to take the ball from the Bohemians central defender, run on and calmly shoot home.
Six minutes later Doyle was there again on the back post to volley in Raffaele Cretaro’s deep cross. Doyle was then also involved in the build up to the third in the 75th minute, feeding Aaron Greene on the right to cross for Blinkhorn to tap in from a couple of yards out.
BOHEMIANS: Murphy; O’Brien, Heary, Burns, Cahill; Flood, Hurley (McEvoy, 84 mins), Cronin, Forrester (Downes, 73 mins); Traynor (Buckley, 57 mins); Fagan.
SLIGO ROVERS: Clarke; Cretaro, Peers, Foran, Powell; Dillon, Russell (Greene, 50 mins), Ryan, Ndo (Ventre, 68 mins); Kirby (Doyle, 61 mins); Blinkhorn.
Referee: D McKeon (Dublin).
