Sligo Rovers will travel to Tallaght Stadium on Saturday for a Women’s Premier Division (WPD) showdown against a Shamrock Rovers side that currently sits in sixth place, some eight points adrift of leaders Athlone Town.
The Bit O’Red will go into the first of two big games on the back of an impressive victory last Saturday against four-time champions Peamount Utd, with Athlone Town set to visit the Showgrounds the following weekend.
Anna McDaniel’s 19th-minute goal was the platform for a thoroughly deserved win last Saturday as the Bit O’Red delivered a tremendous display with 90 minutes of non-stop pressure.
Bonnie McKiernan will start between the posts again as Amber Hardy continues her recovery along with the injured trio of Katie Melly, Jessica Casey and Rachel McGoldrick.
Against that background, injuries to four regular starters, Sligo Rovers manager Steve Feeney has been rewarded with some swashbuckling performances from the players who have deputised and who will now be looking for regular starting positions.
“The fact that we had players of the quality of Muireann (Devaney) and Keeva (Flynn) on the bench last Saturday was a reflection of the actual strength in depth of our panel, and it was a real boost to bring them on in the second half,” stated Steve.
“We got a performance over the whole game against Peamount, and that was something we were aiming for; getting the 1-0 win along with that was a bonus.
“Obviously, it’s a major setback that Katie Melly, Amber Hardy, Rachel McGoldrick and Jessica Casey are still on the injured list, but Paula McGrory and Kya McKenna could be available for selection.
“We are starting to look more solid throughout the pitch at this stage, and I think that was evident after we took the lead against Peamount. We will have to bring that type of performance to Tallaght Stadium on Saturday.
“It’s a bit of a cliché, I suppose, but there is no easy game in this league, and we will have to produce an even better performance this weekend.
“We know that it will be a big challenge on a big pitch, but it’s something the players will relish, and they will be aiming to extend an unbeaten sequence and add to our points tally.
“The bottom line is that we have two big games ahead of us with Athlone Town at the Showgrounds the following weekend before the trip to Belfast to play Linfield in the All-Island Cup.
“I suppose the target for Saturday is to back up our performances against Bohs and Peamount and see where that takes us.
“Shams will have a certain confidence about them and will, no doubt, be expecting to push up the table at our expense,” he added.
The Dublin women will go into Saturday’s game on the back of a 10-goal haul in the last two outings, a 6-0 win and a 4-1 win in the All-Island Cup and WPD, respectively, against bottom-of-the-table DLR Waves.
Republic of Ireland international Ruesha Littlejohn has added to the quality, although she didn’t start last weekend at the Belfield Bowl, where, in a post-match interview, manager Collie O’Neill wasn’t impressed with the condition of the pitch.
Emily Corbett (two) and Joy Ralph scored last weekend against DLR Waves, and there was also an own goal. Prior to that they lost against Galway (3-2) and Wexford (3-2), with a 1-1 draw against Peamount sandwiched between those defeats.
The Dublin side will be going for goals on Saturday and will have the benefit of last season’s joint top scorers, Joy Ralph and Áine O’Gorman, who scored eight goals apiece, to boost the prospects of a first WPD home victory since mid-March.
Kick-off at Tallaght Stadium on Saturday is at 5pm, and the game will be live on LOITV.