It was another encouraging weekend for the academy, with three competitive fixtures providing plenty of positives. There were some impressive performances across the age groups, with the players giving a great account of themselves. While results varied, every squad continued to make positive strides, with their hard work on the training ground continuing to show. Attention now turns to next weekend’s fixtures, where the teams will be looking to build on their recent performances and keep their development moving in the right direction.
U14 | Athlone Town 4–2 Sligo Rovers
After an entertaining 3–3 draw at home to Longford Town, it was another enjoyable afternoon for our U14s as they travelled south on Sunday to face a strong Athlone Town side.
Athlone made the brighter start and took an early lead, but the lads responded well, with Maye finding the equaliser in the 29th minute. The hosts then hit back with two quick goals from Ben O’Connor to open up a 3–1 advantage.
The entertaining first half showed no signs of slowing down as Gethins pulled one back just a minute after Athlone’s third, finishing off a well-worked team move to leave the score at 3–2 heading into the break.
The second half was a much tighter affair, with chances at a premium. Rovers kept pushing for an equaliser right until the closing stages but couldn’t quite find the breakthrough. As the lads threw bodies forward in search of a late goal, Athlone caught them on the counter and wrapped up the win with a breakaway goal in the final minute.
Despite the result, there were plenty of positives to take from another competitive performance against strong opposition.
WU17 | Klub Kildare 1–1 Sligo Rovers
It was an impressive performance from the girls on Saturday as they travelled to FBD Hotels & Resorts Park to face second-placed Klub Kildare.
It wasn’t the start the management team would have wanted, as Kildare took an early lead through a fine strike from Carty. After a lively opening, the game settled down, with both defences and goalkeepers in excellent form, ensuring there were very few clear-cut chances for the remainder of the first half.
As the game approached the hour mark, it looked as though it would take either a mistake or a moment of magic to get the girls back on level terms. Thankfully, it was the latter, as Herbert teed up defender Guckian, who produced a superb finish to find the back of the net.
Both sides continued to battle for a winner, but neither could create the decisive chance, as the referee’s final whistle confirmed the points would be shared.
The result moves the girls up to fourth place in the table after five rounds of matches.
WU23 | Sligo Rovers 0–1 Galway United
Our U23 girls welcomed Galway United to The Showgrounds on Sunday for a Connacht derby in Round 14 of the league.
The girls made a bright start, creating plenty of chances and putting together some positive passages of play. A strong Galway United side also threatened throughout the opening half, but a resilient Rovers defence stood firm as the sides went into the break level at 0–0.
The second half followed a similar pattern, with both teams enjoying spells of possession and creating opportunities, although neither goalkeeper was seriously tested for long periods. With just 15 minutes remaining, however, Amira Bouhlel McNamara struck to put the Tribeswomen in front.
Unfortunately, that proved to be the only goal of the game. Despite the defeat, the girls can take plenty of encouragement from another competitive performance as they now focus on their next game away to Longford.
Tom Lavery