Rovers keep hopes alive

SHAMROCK Rovers' tenuous European qualifying hopes remain alive after this defeat of Derry City at the RDS yesterday.

Alan O'Neill's side must beat Bohemians at Dalymount Park next weekend and hope that Sligo Rovers lose to Drogheda United to enable them to snatch fourth place and thus a possible place in next season's InterToTo Cup.

An impressive first-half display by Derry came to nothing as Rovers turned the game to their full advantage with an over-powering second-half performance to run out comfortable winners.

Rovers, who had failed to earn even one corner in the first-half, forced three inside 11 minutes of the restart and scored from the third. Aaron Lynch, one of two changes in the side from last week, sent over a cross with plenty of pace on it and Mark Reid arrived on cue to power a free header past Tony O'Dowd.

Ten minutes later the Derry defence was found wanting again by another deep cross, this time from Derek Tracey out on the right, and Reid got behind Paul Curran to head into the bottom right-hand corner of O'Dowd's net.

Derry, who had slightly the better of a generally laborious firsthalf, had to wait until the 69th minute to register a real chance of note when Kevin McKeever shot narrowly over the Rovers crossbar from 20 yards after good work by substitute Harry McCourt.

But McKeever made amends six minutes later when pulling a goal back for Derry with a header from Sean Hargan's cross.

The goal proved only a consolation for Derry, who failed to build on it and never again threatened a Rovers side which might have won by far more but for two goal line clearances by Tommy Dunne from Karl Gannon and a couple of good saves by O'Dowd from John Toal and Reid.