Darren Purse has encouraged his players to enjoy the challenge of bringing the Premier Division title race to the final weekend, ahead of Sligo Rovers’ trip to Tallaght Stadium, this Friday.

Hosts and table toppers Shamrock Rovers lead the gallop to the finish line and are three points ahead of bitter rivals Bohs and six clear of neighbours St Pat’s with two games to go. 

A positive result for the Bit O’Red could extend the chase for silverware to Friday week, the last night of league fixtures. 

Tallaght Stadium has proved tough hunting ground for Rovers over the years, but Purse’s side are unbeaten there since May 2025 and have already over-turned Stephen Bradley’s men there this season. 

Shams were the winners at the Showgrounds in both March and July, while Rovers picked up a second win on the bounce in D24 following last year’s final day heroics, beating the Hoops late on courtesy of a dramatic injury time winner from Carl McHugh in May of this year. 

That was Rovers’ last league win in what’s been a challenging season since. 

Purse is keen to move on to the challenge of returning to the top flight at the first attempt but has also pushed his players to play their part on Friday.

“In relation to this year, we’re using the last few games as preparation for next season and you can see that with the number of younger players who are getting a game”, he tells sligorovers.com. 

“The next two games are the same. We want to finish the season as best we can but also try and ready the players we want to keep and have them prepped for next year.

“It’s a challenge, going to Tallaght. I want to challenge myself against the best managers in the country and the players are the same. They must go and show they can compete, regardless of whether or not they’re going to be here next year. 

“We don’t want to be the team that Shamrock Rovers beat to win the title. We want to bring it to next week. Can we maybe do the league some justice and try and be the best we can be on Friday? 

“Every time they cross that line, they’ve the chance to show they’re worthy and they have what it takes. That’s what the players have to do, give their best effort and sometimes that’s all you need to get a result. 

“You always want to put yourself up against the best. Now we have to show we can compete at that level.”

Purse is hopeful that winger Ryan O’Kane could return having missed almost two months with injury, while captain Carl McHugh is unlikely to feature either this or next week in our final game of the season against Derry City. 

“The scan results on Carl’s knee were better than we expected”, Purse explains. 

“But I don’t think we’ll see him for the rest of the year. He’s under contract next season and will be a big player for us. 

“We don’t want to push him for games that don’t mean much in terms of our league position and then aggravate the injury more. We want him back and ready to go for pre-season. 

“To have Ryan back, it’s a massive bonus for us because we’ve really missed him recently. He should be in or around the squad. We’d also hope a few more are back and can strengthen the bench.” 

David Goulden