Sligo Rovers would like to thank both the Match Sponsor and Match Ball Sponsor from last Saturdays home league game against St. Patrick’s Athletic.

The Match Sponsor on the night was Live Tiles, who set up their Sligo base in 2018 and specialize in software. Their headquarters are located in New York.

The Match Ball Sponsor on the night was Rogers Topline Ballymote, who have been servicing the region with building, plumbing, DIY and electrical materials since 1870.

Our thanks to both Live Tiles and Rogers Topline Ballymote for their kind sponsorship and continued support of the club as a whole.

Next up in The Showgrounds is this coming Friday night June 14th, as we entertain Cork City with a 7.45pm kick off.

A reminder the Bit O’ Red are back in action this FRIDAY in the SSE Airtricity Premier Division in The Showgrounds.

Rovers host Cork City in the final game before the mid-season break.

Kick-off is 7:45pm in The Showgrounds and you can buy tickets below.

€23,000 has been generated so far in the Sligo Rovers Annual Draw.

There is €5,000 to be won among a host of prizes. 6,400 tickets were sold last year in the most successful staging of the draw since it began.

Tickets are priced €10 and are available online here , home games and from members of our committee.

The prizes:

1st prize: €5,000

2nd prize: One Night B&B for two people at the 5 Star Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin

3rd prize: Two tickets for Rod Stewart for his 4th December Concert plus One Night B&B and Evening Meal in The Croke Park Hotel.

Buy tickets here

4th prize: One Night B&B and Evening Meal for two people at the Titanic Hotel in Belfast

5th prize: One Night B&B for two people in Hotel Westport, Co Mayo

6th prize: €200 voucher for 4 Star Old Ground Hotel, Ennis, Co Clare

7th prize: €150 Gift Voucher for The Cat and The Moon

8th prize: Sligo Rovers season ticket for 2020

9th prize: 2 Premier Level Tickets for the Republic of Ireland versus Switzerland on 5th September in Aviva Stadium Euro 2020 qualifer

10th prize: Signed Sligo Rovers jersey

The draw takes place on Monday 1st July

This year’s Sligo Rovers Summer Camps will run for eight weeks in total, starting on July 1^st and finishing on August 23^rd.

With Sligo Rovers renowned for providing one of the most affordable children’s camps in the region, the cost remains unchanged yet again at €60 per child.

Each child who participates will also receive an official Sligo Rovers training top (white), a free ticket to a Sligo Rovers home league game, a participation certificate and a picture with the Sligo Rovers first team.

Family discounts will apply yet again, with the cost of two children from the one family €100 per week (€20 saving) and €135 for three children from the one family per week (€45 saving).

The camp runs from 10.30am until 3pm daily. The optional Breakfast Club which sold out at the Easter Camps returns again, which opens from 8.30am each morning.

The cost of the Breakfast Club is an additional €25 per child. Each child that attends is provided with a choice of cereals, toast and juice each morning which is then followed by fully supervised outdoor activities.

Each participant is then walked down to the camp each morning by a coach. The Breakfast Club is limited to 25 children per week with pre booking strongly advised.

For more information or to make a booking, you can email shane@sligorovers.com or contact 071-9171212.

Alternatively, you can book your place online here: https://www.sligorovers.com/product-category/kids-camps/

Kevin Toner cancelled out Jack Keaney’s opener as Sligo Rovers and St Patrick’s Athletic played out a draw at the Showgrounds.

Keaney’s free-kick via a number of deflections gave the Bit O’Red the lead with ten minutes to go, but Toner’s volley barely one minute later claimed a point for Harry Kenny’s men.

Against a Sligo team without a number of key players due to injury, suspension and even international commitments, Pat’s had the better of the early play.

Dave Webster couldn’t hook his early opportunity over Ed McGinty’s head, while Toner’s cross bounced off the top of the Rovers goal shortly after.

Sligo took time to settle into this one and Ronan Coughlan had Saints goalkeeper Brendan Clarke on his toes 16 minutes in.

The Rovers attacker cutting inside but Clarke was alert to swipe the ball from Coughlan at the end line.

Pat’s raised their play once more and went close twice in quick succession through Ciaran Kelly and Gary Shaw.

Kelly wriggling free of the Sligo defence at a Mikey Drennan corner, but the centre half couldn’t steer his free header goalward.

While Shaw’s clever turn allowed him space to shoot from the edge of the area, but his rasper cracked the crossbar with McGinty beaten.

The home side had sight at goal late in the opening period through both Romeo Parkes and Daryl Fordyce. But neither were able to trouble Clarke as both efforts sailed wide.

Pat’s were able to scramble away a Lewis Banks header from a Cawley corner just after the restart.

The oncoming Clarke then did just enough to put off Parkes, after good work from both Fordyce and Ronan Murray in the build up.

Drennan should have had Pat’s in the lead on 62. But he somehow ballooned the ball over the crossbar from directly under it, after sustained pressure following a Saints corner.

Rovers skipper Kyle Callan-McFadden then spurned a great chance to open the evening’s scoring when he got his co-ordinates all wrong, heading over from Keaney’s clever set-piece.

Clarke spilled Parkes’ speculative drive on the next attack but recovered in time.

While both Murray and Dave Webster worked the respective opposition net minder mid-way through the half.

McGinty keeping hold of Webster’s powerful header, while Clarke went full stretch to keep out Murray’s long-ranger.

McGinty had to tip Shaw’s header over his goal with a quarter of an hour to go, as this game hung in the balance.

The game’s opener eventually arrived when Keaney’s free-kick from 30 yards, took a touch off a number of players before the ball finally making its way past a flat-footed Clarke.

The lead last less than a minute however.

Shaw’s initial header came back off McGinty’s far post, but the danger wasn’t cleared as the ball landed to the waiting Toner who fired an unstoppable volley to the Sligo net.

Sligo Rovers: Ed McGinty; Niall Morahan, Jack Keaney, Kyle Callan-McFadden, Lewis Banks; Sam Warde; David Cawley, Daryl Fordyce (Kris Twardek 86); Ronan Coughlan; Romeo Parkes, Ronan Murray. 

St Patrick’s Athletic: Brendan Clarke; Ciaran Kelly, Kevin Toner, David Webster; Simon Madden, Ian Bermingham; Darragh Markey (Chris Forrester 82), Rhys McCabe, Cian Coleman; Mikey Drennan, Gary Shaw (Jake Walker 93).

Referee: John McLoughlin.

Attendance: 2,336

This Saturday’s game with St Patrick’s Athletic will include a free match poster of Bit O’ Red legend Chris Rutherford

Also in the programme among 44 pages for €4

Liam Buckley – his thoughts on tonights game

Conall Collier – What do you think of that Joe Molloy?

Red All Over with Francis Keaveney
Chris Rutherford by Leo Gray

The Showgrounds Beer

20 Questions with Daryl Fordyce

Associate Sponsors 2019

Red Icon – Padraig Burke

Stephen McLoughlin on tonight’s game

You Reds – some nice photos

Sligo Rovers host St Patrick’s Athletic on Saturday night in The Showgrounds in the SSE Airtricity Premier Division.

Rovers have been beaten on two occasions this year by the Saints – 1-0 and 2-1.

In team news, Dante Leverock is away on international duty.

Regan Donelon and Johnny Dunleavy are recovering from muscle injuries and making quicker progress than anticipated. Both will have pre-match fitness tests with a view to featuring.

There are no other concerns

Liam Buckley said: “We felt the scoreline was harsh last week. That said, we have to respond now because it’s another game and we’re back at home. There’s six points between ourselves and Pat’s so it’s an important match.

“We’re missing Dante but Regan and Johnny are coming along so they may come into play. We have been utilising the entire squad recently and that’s going to continue. We have quality players within our ranks.

“It’s good to be back in The Showgrounds but it’s a hard game so have to be at. I don’t think there has been much between the sides this year so we’ll give it our all and see where it takes us. We want to show the progress we feel we are making.”

Sligo Rovers will play League 1 side Accrington Stanley in a mid-season friendly on Monday 8 July in The Showgrounds

John Coleman, Jimmy Bell and Seamus Connelly bring Stanley to Sligo for the game with more details to be confirmed shortly.

We look forward to the game.

Luke McNicholas has signed a new two and a half year contract to keep him at Sligo Rovers until the end of the 2021 season.

McNicholas has progressed from the Under-17 squad and is now number two goalkeeper at The Showgrounds.

He has been capped at Under-18 level for the Republic of Ireland. 

McNicholas made his senior debut in the EA Sports Cup game with Finn Harps this year.
He joined Rovers from Manulla and has been a full-time professional for the last 12 months.

Liam Buckley: “I had known about Luke from when he playing underage football and I knew he was good but having worked with him now and with our goalkeeping coach Leo, he is a real talent. He has a top career ahead of him.

“Ed McGinty and Luke are vying for that starting position now. They are both very good goalkeepers and from the first day of the year it has been a toss-up for that position.

“Luke signed a new contract last year and the target was to really break into the first-team set-up. He has done that and now it will be to start playing league games and no doubt that will come in this contract period.

“We’ve got five or six young players in the squad and looking to make a breakthrough. They are all making progress, I’m delighted with them and you’ll see them continue to grow as we go on.”

Sam Warde has agreed terms with Sligo Rovers to sign for the club until the end of the 2019 season following the conclusion of his loan from Colchester United.

The 21-year-old midfielder has made 11 appearances since joining on loan from the U’s and has begun to become a more regular feature in Liam Buckley’s side.

He said: “I’ve really enjoyed my time here, it’s a very good club. There is a great group of players who make you feel very welcome and there’s a great spirit among us.

“I’ve played 11 games I think and I don’t think I’ve really shown what I can do. I think there is a lot more to come and I really want to show that now.

“We have our ambition in the league and I want to play a part in that because we are capable of finishing the year very well.”

Liam Buckley said: “Sam has been patient bearing in mind Jack Keaney has been in the team in that defensive role.

“I’m delighted he has signed until the end of the season. The agreement I had with him when he came in from Colchester was we would review it in the summer. I’m delighted he is on board.

“I have found through experience that development league in England is exactly what it says on the box. It’s a development league. When you come here it’s a man’s league. It’s tough. There’s no two ways about it. 

“When you have ambitions to be at the top half of the table, there are very few matches that are easy.

“I think it’s been a breath of fresh air for him in relation to where he was because he was a big stagnant over there.

“He has come in, done well, trained well. He’s got some talents, we’re trying to get them into our game here. He can make a big impact now in these next few months.”