Shamrock Rovers crowned champions as Derry City fail to win at Sligo Rovers

Sligo Rovers 0

Derry City 0

Shamrock Rovers are champions for a third year running as Derry City failed to win at Sligo Rovers this evening.

City had to win to keep their slim hopes alive, but they failed to put their stamp on a poor game at the Sligo Showgrounds and the league title race is now over as a result, with Rovers seven points clear with just two games remaining.

Ruaidhri Higgins made five changes to the team which drew with Shelbourne in a bid to freshen his side up, with big names like Patrick McEleney, Michael Duffy and Jamie McGonigle left on the bench.

City could have taken the lead with 100 seconds of kick off as they went quickly onto the attack and Will Patching clipped a pass into the area to put Joe Thomson through, but goalkeeper Richard Brush was off his line quickly to block the midfielder’s effort.

Ryan Graydon, on his first start in five games, had City’s next chance on 20 minutes, but having done all the hard work well by beating Shane Blayney on his way into the area, he could only send his shot straight at Brush.

It took Sligo Rovers a good half hour to offer any sort of threat and they could well have taken the lead only for Brian Maher to deny them twice in the space of 20 seconds. Will Fitzgerald did very well to win a free kick 20 yards from the City goal and Adam McDonnell’s well-hit effort was parried by the goalkeeper, who had to be alert again when the ball was returned into the area and Aidan Keena met it with a diving header.

Suddenly, Derry were on the back foot having been comfortable for most of the game, and Ciaran Coll gave the ball away in his own half to allow Keena a run at goal, which ended in another fine save from Maher, who denied the league’s top scorer again.

Derry City should have gone ahead 10 minutes into the second half. Patching's free kick into a packed area caused all sorts of chaos and it fell out of the sky onto the foot of Cian Kavanagh who somehow volleyed wide from close range.

Ruaidhri Higgins made a double change on 63 minutes, sending on both Michael Duffy and Jamie McGonigle and it almost resulted in an immediate goal. Ronan Boyce’s cross into the Sligo area was met by McGonigle who glanced a header goalwards, but Brush did just enough to keep the ball out, diving full stretch to get a hand on the ball.

Brush then had to dive to the other side to push away a low effort from Boyce as Derry began to apply pressure for the first time in the second half.

City finished the game strongly but it was Sligo who could have won it in added time when substitute Karl O’Sullivan crossed for Max Mata, but he volleyed wide with just Brian Maher to beat.

SLIGO ROVERS: Brush, Banks, Blaney (Clancy 78’), Fitzgerald, Liivak (Mata 57’), McDonnell, Burton (Bolger 72’), Kirk, Pijnaker, Barlow (O’Sullivan 45’), Keena.

DERRY CITY: Maher, Boyce (McEneff 81’), Coll (Lafferty 81’), Connolly, McJannet, Dummigan, Diallo, Thomson (Duffy 63’), Patching (P McEleney 81’), Graydon, C Kavanagh (McGonigle 63’).

REFEREE: Neil Doyle.