Sligo Rovers midfielder Will Fitzgerald has been named the SSE Airtricity/Soccer Writers Ireland Player of the Month for April.
The Bit O’Red winger topped the players’ poll ahead of Pat’s Kian Leavey and Dundalk’s Gbemi Arubi and also finished ahead of Galway’s David Hurley, Danny Grant of Shamrock Rovers and Derry goalkeeper Ed Beach.
He is the fifth Bit O’Red player to win the award in the last five years after Greg Bolger (2021), Adian Keena (x2) (2024) and Wilson Waweru (2025).
The Limerick native has been a constant for Rovers this season, playing each and every minute of our 16 games so far this season, scoring four times and contributing to several goals.
Club captain, he made his 156th appearance for the club against Shelbourne at Tolka Park on Friday night last and recently surpassed his 250th League of Ireland cap. He has assisted in 31 goals in his time at the Showgrounds so far.
He has played an integral part of Rovers’ recent good form, scoring in consecutive wins over Bohs, Waterford and Dundalk.
“Sligo is my second home now and I have enjoyed every minute of it since coming up here to the north-west of the country. We have a great club and a great fan base,” said Fitzgerald on accepting the award.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that things are picking up for us as a team and our performance levels have picked up big time in the last month. It was a very difficult start to the season for us with a lot of new players, but once the weather improves, the results start to pick up and the pitches start to get a bit better too.
“We can focus on our style of play that we have worked so hard on every day in training. We just needed that confidence boost with that win against Bohemians away and that’s what led us to go on our current run of results and to put points on the board.
“I think I have matured as a player and this is my tenth season in the League of Ireland. I have enjoyed every minute of my career so far. I have matured off the pitch as well and that extra responsibility of being appointed club captain is a huge honour for me and my family,” he added.
“John Russell has been a massive influence on my career and anyone who has been around the club in recent years and worked under him, they have huge respect for the man not just as manager but the person he is. We have full belief in him and we always have even after the tough start we had to the season.
“He sets the work ethic every single day and when you have your manager working that hard for the club, it trickles down to the senior and younger players and that makes my job as captain that much easier. I have the utmost respect for John (Russell) and he has a long and successful managerial career ahead of him.”