Soccer

Sligo win the battle of the Rovers at the Showgrounds

League leaders Shamrock Rovers beaten by Jack Keaney’s brilliant free-kick

Sligo’s Jack Keaney celebrates scoring his team’s second goal of the game. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho

Sun May 5 2019 - 13:58

Sligo Rovers 2 Shamrock Rovers 1

Two stunning long-range strikes saw the men in red and white win the battle of the Rovers at the Showgrounds on Saturday night.

Daryl Fordyce’s first goal for Sligo Rovers was almost bettered by Jack Keaney’s brilliant free-kick as Aaron Greene’s strike was not enough for leaders Shamrock Rovers in an outstanding contest.

The three goals arrived in the second half, and Fordyce's strike was a thing of beauty as he curled the ball in to the top corner ten minutes in to the second half, after the midfielder was teed up by hard-working striker Ronan Coughlan.

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Fordyce was only recalled to the starting line-up having started the previous two games on the bench, but he showed his worth to give Alan Mannus no chance from distance.

But the Hoops were level 10 minutes later, as Greene finished sublimely from inside the area with his back to goal.

The outstanding Jack Byrne was the architect as he swept the ball in to the path of Trevor Clarke. The full-back picked out Greene, who still had work to do before he was able to slide the ball home against his former club.

Ten minutes later and the ball was on the net again, as Keaney superbly placed an unstoppable free-kick in to the roof of the net to put the home side back in the ascendancy.

SLIGO: Beeney, Dunleavy (Twardek 25), Leverock, Mahon, Banks, Donelon, Cawley, Keaney, Fordyce (Morahan 90), Parkes, Coughlan.

SHAMROCK: Mannus, O'Brien, Grace, Lopes, Clarke, Bolger (Kavanagh 85), Watts (Carr 77), McEneff, Byrne, Finn, Greene.

Referee: G Kelly

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