AIRTRICITY LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION: Drogheda Utd 0 Shamrock Rovers 4:SHAMROCK ROVERS brushed aside bottom side Drogheda last night at United Park when they could have doubled their winning margin so great was their dominance. A goal to the good at the break scarcely reflected their superiority but the second half was a different matter.

Early on Rovers’ Ken Oman powered a header over from a Billy Dennehy corner. With quarter of an hour Drogheda goalkeeper David Quirke brought down Ciarán Kilduff just outside the box but Dennehy clipped the resulting free wide of the mark.

On 28 minutes Dennehy spotted Gary Twigg ghosting in behind the defence to head the ball to the net. Rovers had an Oman effort chalked out before Kilduff raced through on goal but he guided his shot wide.

With the strong wind at their backs the league leaders pushed on from the start of the second half and almost scored when Gary McCabe’s drive was deflected to safety by Robert Kovacsevics. Goal number two arrived when McCabe fired a shot off the underside of the bar, which rebounded to Dennehy who knocked his effort off the post for Kilduff to eventually guide the ball home.

Six minutes later two became three when when the Drogheda backline failed to deal with Dennehy’s corner and Twigg turned instinctively to tuck the ball past Quirke for his second goal. A rampant Rovers turned the screw further in the 73rd minute as Pat Sullivan’s cross picked out Dennehy who cracked a strike to the net.

DROGHEDA UNITED:Quirke;, Gannon, Hand, Kovacsevics, Whelan, Quigley, M O'Brien (Flynn, 59 mins), Lester (McCrossan, half-time), Freeman, Corcoran, C O'Brien (Costigan, half-time).

SHAMROCK ROVERS:Mannus; Sullivan, Murray, Oman (Flynn, 59 mins), Stevens, McCabe, Rice, Finn (McCormack, 78 mins), Dennehy, Twigg, Kilduff (Sheppard, 77 mins). Referee: N Doyle (Dublin).