The fixtures for the 2019 SSE Airtricity League were announced this week.

Rovers will begin away to champions Dundalk on Friday 15 February.

The first home game is Friday 22 February against St Patrick’s Athletic

February	Fri. 15	Dundalk	A
February	Fri. 22	St. Patrick’s Athletic	H
February	Mon. 25	Cork City	H
March	Fri. 1	Finn Harps	A
March	Sat. 9	U.C.D.	H
March	Fri. 15	Shamrock Rovers	A
March	Sat. 23	Waterford	H
March	Fri. 29	Derry City	A
April	Sat. 6	Bohemians	H
April	Sat. 13	Dundalk	H
April	Fri. 19	St. Patrick’s Athletic	A
April	Mon. 22	Cork City	A
April	Fri. 26	Finn Harps	H
April	Mon. 29	U.C.D.	A
May	Sat. 4	Shamrock Rovers	H
May	Sat. 11	Waterford	A
May	Sat. 18	Derry City	H
May	Tues. 21	Waterford	H
May	Fri. 24	Bohemians	A
May	Fri. 31	Dundalk	A
June	Sat. 8	St. Patrick’s Athletic	H
June	Fri. 14	Cork City	H
June	Fri. 28	Finn Harps	A
July	Mon. 1	U.C.D.	H
July	Fri. 5	Shamrock Rovers	A
July	Fri. 19	Derry City	A
July	Sat. 27	Bohemians	H
August	Sat. 3	Dundalk	H
August	Fri. 16	St. Patrick’s Athletic	A
August	Fri. 30	Cork City	A
September	Sat. 14	Finn Harps	H
September	Fri. 20	U.C.D.	A
October	Sat. 5	Shamrock Rovers	H
October	Fri. 11	Waterford	A
October	Sat. 19	Derry City	H
October	Fri. 25	Bohemians	A

Sligo Rovers Heritage Group has received funding under the Peace IV Programme for the development of an outdoor museum at Sligo Showgrounds. The design of the facility will see the erection of 90 display panels corresponding with the club’s 90 year history. Building on the very popular photo display erected by Vincent Nally, the facility will be largely located at the rear of the Treacy Avenue Stand, although a number will be placed at locations throughout the ground.

Diverse history

In spite of our remote location on Europe’s western frontier,throughout its history Sligo Rovers has attracted players, managers and committee volunteers from all over the world, people of all denominations,ethnicity and cultures. The museum will provide a visual focal point to illustrate our welcoming, multi-national tradition, and will highlight the diverse make-up of the club throughout its history.

Calling on supporters

In keeping with the objectives of the Peace Programme, and to reflect the club’s multi-cultural tradition, many of the display discs will showcase this important element of our history. The club is calling on its Members and supporters to help with suggestions for the information panels,whether an iconic figure; stand-out memory, special achievement, an individual or team success.

Please email suggestions/ideas to showgroundsmuseum@gmail.com

Deadline: 1st February 2019

The results will be published on the club’s website and in local media.

Final decision rests with Sligo Rovers Heritage Group/Project Team. It is intended that the facility will be completed towards the end of the 2019 season. 

Details of the outdoor museum project are available on the Sligo Rovers Heritage Group Facebook page.

Background to Peace Programme

The PEACE IV Programme is a unique cross-border initiative,financed through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) of the European Union and managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB). It has been designed to support peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland and the Border Region of Ireland. In addition to supporting peace and reconciliation, the ERDF also contributes to the promotion of social and economic stability, in particular through actions to promote cohesion between communities.

Sligo has been involved in the PEACE Programme since 1995 as one of the designated Border Counties and through the new PEACE IV Programme continues to promote greater levels of peace and reconciliation.

We have been astounded by the reaction to our Christmas shop so far this year. It has been our busiest and best to date, with many items sold out within days of release, and other item’s stock levels decreasing.

We have just obtained extra stock as we approach the final week before Christmas. Unfortunately we cannot guarantee delivery prior to Christmas for our online orders, therefore supporters are now able to make their purchase online, and the price now excludes delivery, meaning you can simply collect it in store at our Christmas Shop at Barton Smiths. 

We understand supporters may begin to worry if their item won’t arrive in time for Christmas, so we believe this will help everyone and make things that little easier.

All prices now mirror the in store price, however, if you wish to still have your product delivered you can, buy simply clicking the link included with each product and adding the delivery charge to your basket as a seperate ‘item’.

We have had brand new kid’s winter jackets delivered as well as plenty more Joma teamwear and club merchandise and stocking fillers such as beanie hats, baseball caps, mugs & scarves.

Our 2019 Super Red offer remains the same, with kids between 5-12 inclusive getting a free away shirt with your season ticket.

We also have an offer for season ticket holders, who can get €15 off your Bit O’Red home jersey with every ticket purchased.

To visit our online store and reserve your items today, click the link below and simply pick it up in store in Sligo Town.

https://www.sligorovers.com/product-category/teamwear/

https://www.sligorovers.com/product-category/teamwear/

Sligo Rovers would like to congratulate its latest club lotto jackpot winner, Padraig Rooney from Cliffoney, who collected his prize of €7,700 recently.

Padraig who supports the Rovers lotto each week, purchased his ticket from lotto seller Hugh Quinn and scooped the big prize after correctly matching all four numbers in the draw on November 5^th. The winning numbers on the night were 2,9,17 & 24.

Speaking to the club, Padraig stated that he picks the same numbers every week for the draw and the numbers are “based on birthdays within the family”. Ironically the same four numbers proved successful for Padraig in October, as he secured another local club jackpot win with the same four numbers.

The presentation of the cheque was made outside the Clayton Hotel Sligo with Aisling Mc Sharry, Business Development Manager of the hotel present. Also pictured making the presentation were Frank Beirne (Lotto Administrator), Hugh Quinn (Lotto Seller), Liam Buckley and Brendan Lacken of Sligo Rovers.

To play the Sligo Rovers Club Lotto, you can purchase a ticket through any lotto agent in the region or alternatively play online at sligorovers.com.

Everyone at Sligo Rovers would like to extend our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Mary Burns who passed away at the weekend.

Mary’s son Joe Burns, was chairman of Sligo Rovers Football Club in 2015.

Our thoughts are with Joe and the extended family at this difficult time. 

The club has teamed up with The Sligo Homeless Appeal which is fundraising on behalf of Focus Ireland Sligo and Shalomar men’s shelter and Sligo Social Services Homeless Department.

We will be helping out by offering our Showgrounds office and our Christmas Shop at Barton Smith, Hyde Bridge Sligo as drop off points, where we invite people to donate some items in aid of the Sligo Homeless Appreal 2018. 

The items which are needed are long life foods, tinned food, pasta, noodle pots and all other similar items.

Essential items such as shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste/brushes, hair brushes and body wash items for personal hygiene.

Larger size jumpers or T-shirts are helpful as these can fit all different sizes. Winter hats, gloves and socks are also essential, especially at this time of year. The appeal will cater for both males & females so ladies essential items are also required as well as packets of biscuits or sweets which will be included as “treat items” for Christmas.

The club would like to stress the importance of this appeal and we urge our fantastic support base to get behind it and donate whatever they can, big or small. 

Anyone who donates items in our Christmas Shop will be automatically entered into a draw to win a Sligo Rovers home jersey. 

Office hours at The Showgrounds are Monday to Friday between 9.30am and 5pm, with our Christmas Shop at Barton Smiths open from 9.30am-6pm daily. 

We thank you in advance for your fantastic support.

For more information on the Sligo Homeless Christmas Appeal you can visit the Facebook page at:
“Sligo Homeless Christmas Appeal”

Sligo Rovers and Raffaele Cretaro have released a joint statement this afternoon as it was confirmed that the club legend had worn the Bit O’ Red as a player for the final time.

Sligo Rovers have paid a detailed tribute to the 37-year-old, saying he made an indelible mark on not just a football club but the Sligo community over 17 seasons.

Read a statement from club chairman Martin Heraghty and manager Liam Buckley here. 

With 531 appearances and 86 goals, including the record amount of league appearance for the club, the Tubbercurry man inspired generations that set foot in The Showgrounds for close to two decades.

Raffaele Cretaro said: “My dream was to play for Sligo Rovers. I didn’t know if it was going to last for one game, one start or one year. I just wanted to fulfil my dream. I wanted to dedicate myself to that for how ever long it lasted, I’m proud to say I did.

“I have amazing memories that will stay with me for my entire life. It has been so much of my life since I made my debut in 2000. I’m thankful to Tommy Cassidy for giving me that chance.

“I was a local lad, I wanted to play for my local club and I wanted to be the best player I could.

“Each season went by and there wasn’t too many times where I reflected in depth and dwelt on it. It was always looking forward, trying to learn, trying to fashion the chance to do something better each year here.

“As I speak about it today I could talk about all those wonderful days. The game against St Patrick’s Athletic to win the league title and scoring two goals. Everything was perfect that day. The drama and the euphoria. It was a fairytale.

“The FAI Cups, the great teams, the unbelievably talented team-mates, inspirational managers, the dedicated people around the club and the passionate supporters who live and breathe Rovers and make it what it is.

“The feeling of knowing you were creating history for Sligo Rovers but more so what it would mean to all those people. I always just wanted to savour it and then do it all over again.

“Those moments are what you put boots on for. But you know too there were also not so great times. I never let those phase me.

“I saw it all and I just always realised there would be an opportunity, whether it was in one week or two weeks or how ever long, that you could go out and try to change it on the pitch and alter the club’s fortunes.

“I don’t think there is a secret to longevity in terms of me playing here.

“But for Sligo Rovers and how the club always comes back fighting when its down, that is the secret. There is always another day as long as you’re willing to work for it. The club has never been beaten in that sense.

“I got to fulfil my career ambition. I remember coming out of The Shed end in The Showgrounds when it was wired fencing around it and in my first season the main stand was being built beside it. As I sit here today, it’s a transformation.

“That came about by the golden era we had here. That was a legacy left behind. I don’t want to talk too much about my own personal legacy, I think that’s for others to do.

“What I would like to say what if I inspired one person, even just one, then I did a good job in my time wearing the Rovers jersey. If it’s one young boy or girl dreaming now, if it was one dreaming over the 17 seasons I played here, then that’s good enough for me because it can turn into something magical. I speak from experience.

“There is a little bit of sadness that it’s over now as a Sligo Rovers player. I realise that and there’s a mixture of emotions.

“Wherever I went I always felt I didn’t just represent myself but I represented Sligo Rovers. It was not me as a person that people were viewing, it was the club.

“I love Rovers, I always had its best interest at heart and I probably put it ahead of my own sometimes, but it was worth it on every occasion.

“I will move to part-time football elsewhere shortly and that’ll suit me at this stage in my career. Those games are Friday nights. On a Saturday I can say you’ll very likely find me in The Showgrounds with my son Matteo supporting the team again.

“As I speak about Matteo, I want to mention my testimonial this year and the standout moment. That was when my wife Joanne and Matteo were by my side looking on with pride. It meant so much to me. He might not be old enough to remember too much of it but I hope one day he can look back at the great photos and souvenirs of the occasion. My pride was as big as theirs.

“Joanne was there from the beginning, encouraging me, and my parents supported me in each decision and guided me.  My family have always been there when I needed them and I’m so grateful to have them.

“I’m conscious if I start speaking about individuals in football I could go on forever. I would like to say this and finish on this note.

“The reason I played here for so long was you; the supporters. I just want to say thank you. The public were so kind. The reception and encouragement I’d get each time in The Showgrounds was something I will always treasure.

“As each year passed, that connection and support grew stronger.

“You drive the club on. Through hardship, glory, good times and bad, you always keep funds coming in to bring in the players, you bring the colour, the noise here and the passion to never give up.

“There are countless more stories for Sligo Rovers players to go out and write on that pitch and I’ll be watching on for those.

“I count myself very fortunate that mine was so long, so rewarding, with memories and moments that we all lived together.

“See you under lights on a Saturday night and thank you forever.”

Raff Cretaro

Sligo Rovers chairman Martin Heraghty hailed Raffaele Cretaro as one of the most important figures in the history of the club following the announcement that his time at a player was concluding this morning.

Cretaro wrote a note to Bit O’ Red fans as he remembered all the important figures in his long and trophy-laden spell with his hometown club. You can read that here. 

The Bit O’ Red chairman said Cretaro was an icon and an irreplaceable figure.

He said: “Over 17 seasons we have treasured each night Raff has taken to the pitch and represented our club with distinction and class.

“Whenever someone mentions Sligo Rovers, it is often quickly followed by the name Raff Cretaro. He is the personification of our football club.

“Many things come to mind. The early years in the First Division as he provided the light that there would be better future for us all of us one day. Raff’s leap into the air to win a header defied logic and lit up The Showgrounds and wowed our supporters. We wanted a better stage for it.

“That came and each time Raff would step up a level when the club did. We yearned for trophies and they arrived with him at the forefront. He turned into the most feared striker in the league for a period and it was all the more remarkable given we had to use him in every position in the team!

“Those goals stick out, the winning penalty at the Aviva Stadium and that incredible piece of magic in 2012 against Pat’s. The Showgrounds had never seen a moment like it.

“But what I will always be grateful to Raff Cretaro for is being the person we could turn to for hope. In tougher times, you knew he would be going out there and showcasing that insurmountable fight that is within him and our football club. He defined all of that.

“Raff played in every single outfield position for Sligo Rovers. He knew where his heart lay. How the story unfolded in 2011 and 2012 in particular was fate, and he made it so.

“On behalf of the club I’m so grateful for his sacrifices, and to his family as well as they kicked every ball with him.

“There are players in our Under-15s, Under-17s, Under-19s and senior team that put on our shirt now trying to be in any way like Raffaele Cretaro.

“The wishes of our supporters went unfulfilled for decades, but became possible thanks to people like Raff, and when that period was over, he was there to help us build all over again.

“Today it is my honour to salute one of the greatest individuals ever to be associated with the Sligo Rovers jersey. Raff, we simply say we loved every moment and we mean every word of this tribute, and feel it twice as much.”

Liam Buckley said: “For so long I watched on as Raff brought his Sligo Rovers career to new heights. I watched on as he scored those goals against me in The Showgrounds as St Pat’s manager and you could only admire a player so loyal and that cared so much for his club.

“It isn’t just about what he brings as a player. He is revered in Sligo and rightfully so. I know the club consider themselves so fortunate to have had his services for 17 seasons. He is a remarkable person because it is strength of character which has led to such a long and successful career here.

“In the modern game that achievement for an outfield player is simply unheard of now. He has defied logic in contributing so much to Sligo Rovers over that long period of time.

“In decades to come the name Raffaele Cretaro will brings smiles to the faces of the people of Sligo and you can’t achieve much more than that in football when you combine it with the honours he has won and the spirit in which he played the game.

“We wish him a wonderful future and I know he will forever be behind this club.”

Sligo Rovers FC are inviting applicants to express their interest in a number of roles for the Women’s U17 team who will once again participate in the Continental Tyres Women’s U17 National League in 2019.

Through our Women’s Football section, our goal is to be competing at the highest level of women’s football. We will provide a performance centre strategy that encompasses the club wide philosophy for players to develop within a comprehensive and professionalised environment.

The positions will be on a voluntary basis. The role will provide valuable experience for the successful candidate of working with an elite group of players.

• Assistant Coach
• Goalkeeper Coach
• Strength & Conditioning Coach
• Video Analyst
• Physiotherapist

Trials will be held in early January with training commencing in Mid January and running until the end of the season in October 2019.

The ideal candidate will have skills and experience in the following areas:

Essential Criteria

• Long-term commitment to working within a multi-disciplinary team.
• Access to both email and phone.
• Experience and enthusiasm for coaching and mentoring elite young players and coaches.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to build meaningful, strong strategic relationships with players, staff and officials.
• Must be available for games / training at weekends and evenings.
• Successful candidate will be subjected to garda vetting clearance.

Desirable Criteria

• Up to date Safeguarding 1 / Child Welfare Certificate. (Will be required prior to commencing role)
• A valid National C / D Licence holder for coaching roles
• Organisational skills.
• Previous experience of coaching in female game.

To apply for any of these positions please email your CV with a cover letter to Breifne Earley, Secretary, Women’s Football Committee, Sligo Rovers FC at sligoroverswomen@gmail.com by Sunday, 16th December 2018.

Shortlisting will apply and candidates will be called for interview shortly after the closing date.

After 11 weeks of participants falling by the wayside from the 605 original participants three players have survived. With Christmas approaching and the top teams all but eliminated from consideration the remaining 3 players have embraced the spirit of the season and agreed to split the €1,000 prize money equally between them. Continue reading “Last Men Standing – 3 Share The Title” →