| Heartache for Rovers after penalty shoot-out |
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| Wednesday, 22 August 2007 | |
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Rovers clash with Waterford United ended in heartache as the visitors sealed a win on penalties after what was a thrilling FAI Ford Cup tie tonight at The Showgrounds.
Sligo Rovers – Waterford United Tues 21 Aug, The Showgrounds Attend: 2500 (est) Match Sponsor: McCarricks Garage, Tubbercurry Ford Man of the Match: Conor O’Grady The word classic is too often bandied about to describe cup clashes, but tonight’s encounter at the Showgrounds more than deserves the accolade. Four goals, extra time, penalties and an abundance of heroes on both sides served up before Rovers biggest crowd of the season, but ultimately this feast of FAI Cup football ended in defeat for a brave and often brilliant Sligo Rovers. If the national scribes recent obsession with the goings on at Sunderland really wanted to understand players with character and hunger, then they could not have done better than to witness the fare on offer tonight. It was relentless, end to end stuff, with both sides having the opportunity to end it in regulation time, but instead the tie was settled in a penalty shoot-out by a former Rovers player now plying his trade with the club from the South East. The sides had only one change since Friday night’s encounter in the RSC, with Conor O’Grady coming back from suspension to replace Brian Cash whilst Robert Brosnan replaced the injured Kenny Browne for the visitors. In what was a tight first half, Rovers had the first shot in anger in the seventh minute into the old Shed end, when O’Grady found Cretaro on the right. The Tubbercurry man drove a cross field ball that Kudozovic controlled and flicked into the path of Hughes who drove a first time volley wide of the goal. A minute later though Waterford took the lead, catching Rovers unawares at the back when Bermingham got to the by-line, putting a low ball across the six yard box and Paul McCarthy was on hand stretching in and placing the ball into the roof of the net. The goal took the wind out of the home side and Waterford continued to look dangerous and may have extended their advantage had an unmarked Brosnan got on the end of a corner on the quarter hour. But it was a set-piece at the other end on seventeen minute that put Rovers back on level terms. A foul by Breen on Judge twenty five yards out gave Fahrudin Kudozovic the ideal platform to provide the home crowd with a carbon copy of the goal he scored against Cork a couple of weeks ago. And he didn’t disappoint, firing a scorcher in to the top left hand corner with his right foot. Midway through the lively McCarthy had effort saved by Brush, but the home time were in the ascendancy and pressed hard to edge ahead. O’Grady was denied by perfectly timed tackle following a good lay-off by Judge from a Cretaro cross and resultant corner by Kudozovic’s eventually fell to Peers who thundered an effort from fifteen yards off the crossbar. O’Grady was in the thick of things as the home side sought to ratchet up the pace but his brace of headers failed to hit the target. The pace was frenetic for much of the remainder of the half, but the guile didn’t match the intensity and neither ‘keeper was called into action. Rovers came out with all guns firing at the beginning of the second half and it only took three minutes before they went ahead. Conor O’Grday failed to connect with a poorly struck Kudozovic corner, but Matt Judge was on hand to pounce and he made no mistake from close range. On fifty six minutes, Boyd sent Kudozovic free down the left and the Bosnian’s in-swinging cross was met by Hughes but his effort went wide when Judge seemed to be a better option Judge was involved again when he rolled it into the path of Cretaro but there was no one there to convert his low cross across the face of the goal. Waterford still looked dangerous though on the break but were restricted to a stinging shot from distance by Kavanagh which Brush dealt with on the second attempt. After a relative lull in proceedings, the game was brought to life again in the sixty seventh minute when a Flynn ball into the box was met by O’Sullivan, who appeared to control it with his hand, before slotting under Brush and in off the post for the equaliser. Rovers were rattled and tempers became frayed as the visitors reminded them that there were two teams in this tie. It took the home side some time to adjust and despite some incisive running from O’Grady and Hughes from midfield, the home side found Waterford hard to break down. The Blues looked lively with repeated counter attacks and with seven minutes to go a couple of goalmouth scrambles sent shivers down the Rovers spines. At the other end, Matt Judge showed a clean pair of heels putting Cretaro through but the visitors averted the danger. There was no winding down of clocks as the game ticked towards the ninety minutes, and despite shots from range from Cash and Manson, the home side were the more relieved when the end of the ninety minutes were signalled by referee Damien Hancock. Cash broke through in the first minute of additional time running into the box but his pull back was guided goalward by the retreating Brosnan, and Delaney somehow turned it around the post. Kudozovic’s corner was met by Gavin Peers whose header was directed towards the top left hand corner before Flynn got up at the back post to clear Waterford pressed at the railway end, but the back five stood resolute, ably assisted by the tireless Conor O’Grady. The frenetic opening was tempered by tired legs and the closest Rovers came to regaining the lead was when Stephen Manson struck narrowly wide after having ran the length of the pitch to win a corner. It seems that the best of the chances were reserved for the second period of extra time as Rovers were denied again in the one hundred and sixth minute when Manson got on the end of a Judge cross and his effort fell to Hughes but the Australians strike was cleared off the line by Brosnan. Minutes later a sublime O’Grady pass found Cash on the right, and the Dubliner played it to Kudozovic who battled in the box to create space, but having done all the hard work, he didn’t managed to hit the target. Waterford reminded the home supporters that it wasn’t all one way traffic when former Rovers player Robbie Hedderman header hit the post with a stinging header, but it was their last chance on Richard Brush’s goal until the penalty shoot-out. The Bit O’Red did all they could to prevent what seemed the inevitable, putting everything into attack, throwing caution to the wind in an effort to settle the game and they had a series of real chances in the closing minutes. Hughes, raiding into the left side of the visitor’s post at the other end forced a Delaney save at the near post. He was involved again linking with Judge before Cash struck without venom into the arms of Delaney. Judge followed with a half chance, but the almost inevitable occurred when Hancock blew up for full time. Then it was the heart break, swinging one way then the other as Kudozovic and Ventre were denied by Delaney before Hughes, Foy and Judge put Rovers in the driving seat but despite Richard Brush saving two penalties, Robbie Hedderman stepped up to inflict the ultimate pain on the home side. It’s back to the league reality on Friday night for Rovers as they go to Terryland Park to face Galway United on Friday nights. Sligo Rovers Richard Brush, Seamus Coleman, Danny Ventre, Gavin POeers, Jamie McKenzie, Conor O’Grady (Keith Foy 118 min), Rafaele Cretaro (Stephen Manson 86 min), Adam Hughes, Matt Judge, Fahrudin Kudozovic, Mark Boyd (Brian Cash 66 min) Subs not used: Gary Curran, , Thomislav Arcaba, Mikey Creane, Glen McCormack Waterford United Dean Delaney, Patrick Flynn, Robert Hedderman, Robert Brosnan, David Breen, Ray Scully, Cathal Lordan (Dave Warren HT), Paul McCarthy, Vinny O’Sullivan, Daryl Kavanagh (Alan Mulcahy 109 min), Karl Bermingham (Willy Kiely 95 min) Subs not used: Ciaran Fitzgerald, John Hayes, Packie Holden, Shane Harte Refereee Damien Hancock Referees Assistant: Damien McGrath, Fran Cunningham, Fourth Official Brendan Kelly Bookings Sligo Rovers: Adam Hughes, Seamus Coleman Waterford United: Dean Delaney, Robbie Hedderman, Dave Warren, Paul McCarthy Read report from first game in Wateford Report by Paraic Casey |
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