By Conall Collier

Sligo Rovers found the going tough against defending champions Athlone Town at the Showgrounds on Saturday evening where referee Arnold Hunter had to be replaced by fourth official Michael Connolly with about 15 minutes remaining.

The referee sustained an injury and had to be assisted from the pitch and that delay, plus a stoppage when Sligo Rovers ‘keeper Bonnie McKiernan received attention, produced 12 minutes of added time.

Athlone were ahead at the break from a Rosin Molloy goal and Kelly Brady doubled the advantage in the second-half, both goals arrived ahead of the water breaks in each half. Maddie Gibson added two late goals for Athlone to seal an eighth victory out of nine outings.

Rovers were well in contention for more than an hour, but were outplayed subsequently and cannot have any complaints about the outcome.

Rovers boss Steve Feeney made two changes from the draw at Tallaght Stadium as Kate Nugent and Muireann Devaney started in place of Keeva Flynn and Kate Nugent

Athlone’s starting 11 featured three changes from the 3-0 victory against Waterford with Ciara O’Neill, Roisin Molloy and Hazel Donegan coming in for Isabel Ryan, Katherine Sullivan and the suspended Natalie McNally.

The Bit O’Red looked strong early on and had a ‘goal’ ruled out in the 11th minute as Athlone laboured to dominate until they broke the deadlock midway through the half.

Sligo woman Molloy finished from a Gibson cross in the 22nd minute and that goal separated the sides at the interval as Athlone Town established a hard-earned 1-0 interval lead.

The hosts pushed and probed for an equaliser and Athlone ‘keeper Maria Matthaiou was tentative on occasions under the high ball while at the other end Bonnie McKiernan was composed and dominated her penalty area. She also saved well from Molloy close to the interval.

Athlone started the second-half on the front foot with both Brady and Gibson going close, but Rovers also created chances as Leah Kelly and Alice Lillie were narrowly off target.

On the hour mark there was a break in play for attention to Bonnie McKiernan after she had denied Brady, but there was nothing the Bit O’Red keeper could do soon after when Athlone made it 2-0. Gibson provided the cross and Brady finished ahead of the second-half water break.

Unusually, when play resumed there was another lengthy stoppage as referee Arnold Hunter sustained an injury and had to be assisted from the pitch with fourth official Michael Connolly deputising.

There was 12 minutes added time and Athlone took complete control for the remainder with Gibson claiming a brace of goals while Bonnie McKiernan made some good saves to curtail the Athlone women.

The next action in the WPD will take place in mid-June away to DLR Waves with the All-Island Cup on the radar for the Bit O’Red against Linfield on Saturday 24th May and Shelbourne on Saturday 7th June.

Sligo Rovers – Bonnie McKiernan; Leah Kelly, Sarah Kiernan, Alanah Doherty, Alice Lillie, Emma Hansberry, Eimear Lafferty, Muireann Devaney, Kate Nugent, Cara King, Anna McDaniel.

Subs – Rebecca McIntyre for King 70 mins, Kya McKenna for Kelly and Morgan Burnap for Doherty both 86m, Lauren Devaney for Lafferty and Natasha Kelly for McDaniel both 96m.

Athlone Town – Maria Matthaiou; Kellie Brennan, Kayleigh Shine, Shauna Brennan, Hannah Waesch, Izzy Groves, Kelly Brady, Rosin Molloy, Maddie Gibson, Hazel Donegan, Ciara O’Neill.

Subs – Isabel Ryan for Donegan and Aoife O’Connor for Molloy both 84 mins, Sarah Flannelly for Brady and Emma Mooney for Groves both 89m, Erica Cunningham for Brennan 91m.

Referee – Arnold Hunter.

Assistant-referees – Darren Corcoran, John Hanney.

Fourth official – Michael Connolly.

Reece Hutchinson was Sligo Rovers’ hero as the Bit O’Red beat neighbours Galway United at Eamonn Deacy Park on Friday.

It was a fourth consecutive defeat for John Caulfield’s men as Rovers kept their second clean sheet on the road this season. 

Hutchinson’s second goal of the season earned the Bit O’Red a massive three points as John Russell’s side moved level with Cork City on 12 points. 

Down bodies due to injuries, John Caulfield made three changes from the side that lost to Waterford; Bobby Burns, Ed McCarthy and Greg Cunningham all returning to the team with Regan Donelon, Cillian Tollett and Conor McCormack all dropping out.

Rovers boss Russell also made three changes from last Saturday’s defeat to Bohemians.

John Mahon returned from suspension, while Jad Hakiki and Matty Wolfe returned to the starting 11 with Ronan Manning missing through injury, and Harvey Lintott and Francely Lomboto dropping to the bench.

In what was a very even first-half, neither side really took a foothold of the game.

Rob Slevin was on hand to divert Jad Hakiki’s ball away from the goal on four minutes, while John Mahon blocked down a volley from April’s player of the month Moses Dyer.

Sam Sargeant in the Rovers goal was tested a number of times early on, but dealt well with everything the home side threw his way.

A goal-line clearance from Gareth McElroy kept Jeannot Esua’s drive out, after Sargeant had got his fingertips to it.

Bobby Burns’ drive was blocked down by Leaving Cert student Conor Reynolds, with Cian Kavanagh’s overhead kick on 37 minutes forcing a save from the experienced Brendan Clarke in the Galway goals.

The hosts thought they had taken the lead on 67 minutes when Hickey cleverly got around Hutchinson inside the box, the American aiming for the far corner.

Rovers did have the woodwork to thank, as Hickey’s effort came off the far post and bounced back into the middle with the visitors dealing with it.

Two minutes later, Rovers hit the lead.

Former Barnsley midfielder Matty Wolfe drove forward and picked out the run of Hutchinson on the left.

The left-back cut inside and his shot took a deflection to beat Clarke much to the joy of the large travelling support. 

Galway native Francely Lomboto worked to get on the end of a good ball over the top after his introduction, but the former Galway United man was forced wide and couldn’t direct his shot on target.

United side were applying serious pressure in additional time at the end of the 90, but Sargeant was not troubled, in truth as Rovers dealt well with any subsequent pressure.

Attention now shifts to Friday’s league game with Shelbourne at Tolka Park as Rovers face the champions, kick-off in Dublin is 7.45pm.

Galway United: Brendan Clarke; Rob Slevin, Killian Brouder, Greg Cunningham; Jeannot Esua, Cian Byrne, Bobby Burns (Colm Horgan, 57 [Brian Cunningham, 92]), Ed McCarthy (Stephen Walsh, 81); Patrick Hickey, David Hurley (Sean Kerrigan, 92); Moses Dyer.

Sligo Rovers: Sam Sargeant; Conor Reynolds (Harvey Lintott, 74), John Mahon, Gareth McElroy, Reece Hutchinson; Jake Doyle-Hayes, Matty Wolfe (Francely Lomboto, 82); Owen Elding, Jad Hakiki, Will Fitzgerald; Cian Kavanagh.

Referee: Damien MacGraith.

Focus switches to Eamonn Deacy Park this Friday as Sligo Rovers meet Galway United in the second Connacht derby of 2025, kick-off 7.45pm. 

Both sides will be looking to turn around their respective recent fortunes with just six points taken from our last ten games combined. Rovers make the trip to Dyke Road on the back of three defeats and two draws, while United have taken just four points from their last available 15 with one win, one draw and three defeats.

The Tribesmen have the better of things in the head-to-head this season, coming out on top when the clubs met at the Showgrounds last month. Cian Byrne hit a brace before Rovers’ Owen Elding fired the Bit O’Red back into this game from the penalty spot with less than 20 minutes to go. John Caulfield’s charges held out for a first league win in Sligo in almost 30 years. 

Both clubs have not occupied the same division in every season over the past decade or so, with Galway suffering relegation in 2017 before coming back up two years ago in 2023. With that in mind, Rovers haven’t won at Eamonn Deacy Park since an EA Sports Cup victory there in 2018 and our most recent league win down there was two years previous when Kieran Sadlier bagged a brace. 

In team news, Rovers boss John Russell heads towards his hometown club with the services of returning captain John Mahon who is back in contention having missed last week’s defeat to Bohemians through suspension. Russell will again be without Oskar Van Hattum and Ollie Denham because of injuries. 

Speaking to sligorovers.com ahead of this derby, Russell says this is the kind of game which would act as a perfect platform for a return to form. 

“The squad and staff all know results have not been good enough for a club like ours. But again, there’s a huge determination within us to turn things around and there’s no better way of beginning to do that than with a good result in a derby this Friday. 

“Last week was hugely frustrating for everyone against Bohs. We missed a penalty early on and then conceded late in the game, it was a real sucker-punch and very hard to take. But that drives the players on to make sure they’re as ready as possible for their next game and make up for it. 

“We have re-grouped during this week and the players are ready now for a huge game.

“The Connacht derby is always special as it’s something really unique. Both sides are in similar form so it really feels like it will all be on the line and both sets of fans will be hoping for a big boost with a good result against a rival. 

“We played down there towards the end of last season and there was a huge crowd from both sides. The atmosphere created by our support was terrific despite being outnumbered by the home support and our lads need them again on Friday.”

David Goulden 

By Conall Collier

Sligo Rovers will bid to extend an unbeaten sequence to four games when defending Women’s Premier Division (WPD) champions Athlone Town visit the Showgrounds on Saturday, 3pm.

The Bit O’Red kept a cleansheet at Tallaght Stadium last Saturday and were well worth a draw as they made it three successive games unbeaten, but Athlone will pose a huge challenge.

On the injury front, almost half a team of regular starters will be absent again as Paula McGrory, Katie Melly, Amber Hardy, Rachel McGoldrick and Jessica Casey remain on the sideline and Rovers manager Steve Feeney is well aware of the challenge this weekend.

STEVE FEENEY

“Athlone are in great form and look like a formidable team at the moment, with seven wins and draw so far in the league and they are scoring plenty of goals also,” he stated.

“Roisin Molloy has returned to action from injury and when you add her to players like Maddie Gibson, Kelly Brady and quality in other positions, they have a strong panel.

“It will be another big test for us this weekend, but then that’s what we want and we are really looking forward to the game against the reigning champions,” he added.

“We’ll prepare as best we can, just like we did last week and the week before and the target will be to extend our unbeaten sequence.

“We are certainly under no illusions about the task that we face, if we are not on our game then we will be punished.

“However, the girls deserve great credit for the way they have found improvement over the last few weeks, especially the way they executed our game plan at Tallaght Stadium last Saturday.

“If we can improve on that against Athlone, then we will be in with a chance, but it will require total concentration for 90 minutes.

“We have conceded only one goal in our last three games while in the three before that, we conceded 11 goals, that’s a reflection on all the players and we now want to build on that, another clean sheet on Saturday would give us a great chance,” he concluded.

ATHLONE TOWN

Currently, Athlone Town lead the way at the top of the WPD with a point to spare ahead of 2023 champions Shelbourne.

The formbook would certainly favour an unbeaten Athlone Town side that has won seven out of eight WPD games this season with a draw at Tallaght Stadium in mid-March where they finished with 10 players following a red card with about 20 minutes remaining.

There was also a defeat (1-0) in the All-Island Cup away to Glentoran where Athlone finished with nine players following two red cards around the 90^th minute mark and despite a red card last weekend after 20 minutes, the Westmeath side carved out an impressive 3-0 victory against Waterford.

LOITV

Kick-off at The Showgrounds is at 3pm and the game is live on LOITV.

Kick-off at The Showgrounds is at 3pm and the game is live on LOITV.

The 500 Club members draw for March & April was made recently by the 500 Club Committee.

These monthly draws see ten members drawn each month for cash prizes, with the top prize being €500.

The 500 Club continues to be one of the club’s most important Fundraisers and we wish to thank all members, and the 500 Club committee for their continued hard work.

March 

· €500 Dermot O’Hara – Fivemilebourne, Co. Sligo 

· €100 Dermot Costello – 45 Rathedmond, Sligo 

· €100 Tony Fagan – Church Hill, Sligo 

· €100 Christy Murphy – Calry, Sligo 

· €100 Conor Maye – Oakfiled, Sligo 

· €100 Stephen McGloin – Drumcondra, Dublin 

· €100 Kiara Killerane – New Circular Rd, Sligo 

· €100 Bartosz Bukowski – Carrney, Co Sligo 

· €100 Gannon and McNamara – 33 Cedar Drive, Sligo 

· €100 Martin Keavney – 26 Ceadar Drive, Sligo 

April 

· €500 Andrew Higgins – Tracey Ave. Sligo 

· €100 John McGowan – Hampton Wood, Dublin 11 

· €100 Cian O’Dowd – Ballinacarrow, Co. Sligo 

· €100 James Creed Rosses Point, Co. Sligo 

· €100 Sean O’Rouke – Moulton, USA 

· €100 Michael Leonard – Blackrock, Dublin 

· €100 Allen McGowan – Knocknare, Co. Sligo 

· €100 Thomas Marren – Tourlestrane, Co. Sligo 

· €100 Craig McGowan – Tonaphubble, Sligo 

· €100 Brenda Kearins – Boyle, Co. Roscommon

SHAMROCK ROVERS 0, SLIGO ROVERS 0

By Conall Collier

Bonnie McKiernan produced a superb display between the posts at Tallaght Stadium on Saturday evening as Sligo Rovers earned a valuable Women’s Premier Division point and made it three games unbeaten with a third clean sheet of the season.

The players have addressed the early-season problem of leaking goals and while few scoring chances were created at the Dublin venue, the first requirement was to make it difficult for the opposition, and that goal has been achieved.

Steve Feeney made one change from the previous week’s win over Peamount, with Keeva Flynn coming into the starting 11 at the expense of Kate Nugent, while his opposite number, Collie O’Neill, also made one change as Republic of Ireland player Ruesha Littlejohn returned to the side in favour of Jaime Thompson.

With Women’s National Team manager Carla Ward watching the action, the hosts were intent on making an impact, but the Bit O’Red produced another battling rearguard action during the opening 45 minutes and went in scoreless at the interval.

They repeated the performance after the resumption and were well worth the point, as solid defending was the hallmark, with Keeva Flynn, Sarah Kierna and Alice Lillie holding the line with tremendous backup from ‘keeper Bonnie McKiernan, who produced a string of smart saves.

Twice she denied Áine O’Gorman with fingertip saves, and she also thwarted Joy Ralph and Katie O’Reilly as the hosts enjoyed plenty of possession but were unable to make any impact on the scoreboard.

The pattern was similar in the second half, where the tireless efforts of Eimear Lafferty, Emma Hansberry and Alanah Doherty limited chances for the hosts, who went close on two occasions through Aoife Brophy, denied by the crossbar, and Ella Kelly.

Substitutes Muireann Devaney and Kate Nugent were crucial additions in the closing stages, and Devaney almost scored with her first touch as the Bit O’Red launched a late attack.

Overall, this was yet another encouraging display from a Sligo Rovers team that is showing consistent improvement each week.

Shamrock Rovers – Katie Keane; Scarlett Herron, Maria Reynolds, Katie O’Reilly, Melissa O’Kane, Joy Ralph, Emily Corbett, Áine O’Gorman, Aoife Brophy, Keelin Comiskey, Ruesha Littlejohn. Subs – Ella Kelly for Corbett 57 mins, Jaime Thompson for O’Gorman, Fiona Owens for Brophy and Anna Butler for O’Reilly all 75m.

Sligo Rovers – Bonnie McKiernan; Leah Kelly, Sarah Kiernan, Keeva Flynn, Alice Lillie, Emma Hansberry, Eimear Lafferty, Alanah Doherty, Mairead McIntyre, Cara King, Anna McDaniel. Subs – Muireann Devaney for McIntyre 71 mins, Kate Nugent for Doherty 85 mins.

Referee – Glen Geraghty.

Assistant referees – Simon Drislane, Dylan Redmond.

Fourth official – John Sconnie-Walsh.

David Goulden at the Showgrounds

Lys Mousset stuck in the 88th minute of this game as Sligo Rovers were beaten late on by Bohemians at the Showgrounds.

To make matters worse for the Bit O’Red, Owen Elding saw an early penalty hit the crossbar as Rovers fell to their second defeat on the bounce.

Rovers came into this game on the back of just one win and two draws in their last five, while the visiting Gypsies were very much in the in-form side here with four victories in their last five outings. 

Rovers boss John Russell, without centre half pairing John Mahon and Ollie Denham made two changes from their defeat to Shamrock Rovers. Jake Doyle-Hayes returned from suspension while Harvey Lintott made his first start in nine games. Midfielder Conor Malley made the bench having been dropped from the squad for the trip to Tallaght. 

A resurgent Bohs named both Rob Cornwall and Colm Whelan in their starting team, their only changes from the late win in Galway five evenings previous.

Eleven years to the day since their last trophy win in the form of the final edition of the Setanta Sports Cup, Rovers went within inches of taking the lead in this one when Elding’s penalty after three minutes came off Kacper Choraka’s crossbar after Cian Kavangh was sent sprawling inside the Bohs area by Rob Cornwall. 

The Dubliners finished the opening half on the front foot, but Rovers did fashion another good chance on 26 minutes when Kavanagh stabbed Elding’s cross narrowly past the post.

Aware a win would move them within striking distance of the top two, the Phibsboro outfit asserted themselves as the half wore on. 

Reece Hutchinson swept a Dayle Rooney effort off his own line after goalkeeper Sam Sargeant had gone travelling. While the net minder diverted Dawson Devoy’s powerful volley over his goal on the next attack. 

The Dalymount outfit continued to press but Rovers dealt well with anything Bohs could muster. Jordan Flores’ drive took a lick off Elding’s heel as it fizzed wide, followed by another decent save from Sargeant who pushed a Cornwall header away from danger. 

Sargeat was involved in proceedings again on the hour when he produced a magnificent double save to keep Rovers alive in the tie. Cornwall’s initial blast was parried by the former Waterford man and Sargeant repeated the trick when his timely reaction kept out Rooney’s follow up. 

Rovers had plenty of play in and around the Bohs box but couldn’t manufacture the final ball to beat Chorzka.  

The winning strike arrived two minutes from time when substitute Mousset arrived in time to volley past Sargeant for another late win on the road for the visitors. 

Sligo Rovers: Sam Sargeant; Harvey Lintott (Wilson Waweru 84), Gareth McElroy, Conor Reynolds (Kyle McDonagh 78), Reece Hutchinson; Jake Doyle-Hayes, Ronan Manning (Jad Hakiki 68); Will Fitzgerald, Francely Lomboto (Stephen Mallon 68); Owen Elding, Cian Kavanagh (Conor Malley 78).

Bohs: Kacper Chorazka; Niall Morahan, Rob Cornwall, Sean Grehan, Ross Tierney; Adam McDonnell (Keith Buckley 78), Dawson Devoy; Ross Tierney (Archie Meekison 83), James Clarke (Lys Mousset 78), Dayle Rooney; Colm Whelan (Rhys Brennan 59). 

Referee: Mark Houlihan. 

Attendance: 2,056.

Sligo Rovers return to the Showgrounds this Saturday night as the Bit O’Red take on Bohemians in Premier Division action, kick-off 7.45pm. 

Rovers are back on home soil after being narrowly beaten by Shamrock Rovers in Tallaght on Monday last. 

Two down at the break, Rovers rallied in the second period and had their hosts under the cosh for sustained periods. Manager John Russell will look to bring that momentum into Saturday’s game with Bohs.

Russell welcomes back Jake Doyle-Hayes from a one match ban. However John Mahon, Ollie Denham and Oskar Van Hattum are unavailable. Mahon serves a one game ban due to the accumulation of a total of ten yellow cards. While Denham and Van Hattum are both nursing knocks. 

Speaking ahead of Saturday, boss Russell says he wants his team to show the desire and creativity which saw his side outplay the Hoops in stages of that game earlier this week. 

“We showed yet again in Dublin that we are more than able to compete with any team in this league”. he said. 

“We were really pleased with the second half performance which really owed us at least a goal. First half, things didn’t go our way and huge improvement was needed and we got that. 

“But in the second half, we could have had two or three goals and we were very impressive going forward. Again, we must improve defensively, everyone knows that and the players are working hard every day in training on that. We’ll be without our two starting centre halves for Bohs but we’ve known that since Monday so we’ve been able to prepare to deal with that. 

“Bohs have really turned things around recently and I think that was always going to happen. They have a really strong squad and will cause us problems but our players will be prepared for that. 

“We’re looking to put a bit of form together now and a few good results in this league can really see you climb and climb quickly.” 

Supporters are asked to note that 2025 Annual Draw tickets will go on sale at this game, with the club hoping to surpass the record amount of €130,000 raised last year. 

David Goulden

Sligo Rovers will travel to Tallaght Stadium on Saturday for a Women’s Premier Division (WPD) showdown against a Shamrock Rovers side that currently sits in sixth place, some eight points adrift of leaders Athlone Town.

The Bit O’Red will go into the first of two big games on the back of an impressive victory last Saturday against four-time champions Peamount Utd, with Athlone Town set to visit the Showgrounds the following weekend.

Anna McDaniel’s 19th-minute goal was the platform for a thoroughly deserved win last Saturday as the Bit O’Red delivered a tremendous display with 90 minutes of non-stop pressure.

Bonnie McKiernan will start between the posts again as Amber Hardy continues her recovery along with the injured trio of Katie Melly, Jessica Casey and Rachel McGoldrick.

Against that background, injuries to four regular starters, Sligo Rovers manager Steve Feeney has been rewarded with some swashbuckling performances from the players who have deputised and who will now be looking for regular starting positions.

“The fact that we had players of the quality of Muireann (Devaney) and Keeva (Flynn) on the bench last Saturday was a reflection of the actual strength in depth of our panel, and it was a real boost to bring them on in the second half,” stated Steve.

“We got a performance over the whole game against Peamount, and that was something we were aiming for; getting the 1-0 win along with that was a bonus.

“Obviously, it’s a major setback that Katie Melly, Amber Hardy, Rachel McGoldrick and Jessica Casey are still on the injured list, but Paula McGrory and Kya McKenna could be available for selection.

“We are starting to look more solid throughout the pitch at this stage, and I think that was evident after we took the lead against Peamount. We will have to bring that type of performance to Tallaght Stadium on Saturday.

“It’s a bit of a cliché, I suppose, but there is no easy game in this league, and we will have to produce an even better performance this weekend.

“We know that it will be a big challenge on a big pitch, but it’s something the players will relish, and they will be aiming to extend an unbeaten sequence and add to our points tally.

“The bottom line is that we have two big games ahead of us with Athlone Town at the Showgrounds the following weekend before the trip to Belfast to play Linfield in the All-Island Cup.

“I suppose the target for Saturday is to back up our performances against Bohs and Peamount and see where that takes us.

“Shams will have a certain confidence about them and will, no doubt, be expecting to push up the table at our expense,” he added.

The Dublin women will go into Saturday’s game on the back of a 10-goal haul in the last two outings, a 6-0 win and a 4-1 win in the All-Island Cup and WPD, respectively, against bottom-of-the-table DLR Waves.

Republic of Ireland international Ruesha Littlejohn has added to the quality, although she didn’t start last weekend at the Belfield Bowl, where, in a post-match interview, manager Collie O’Neill wasn’t impressed with the condition of the pitch.

Emily Corbett (two) and Joy Ralph scored last weekend against DLR Waves, and there was also an own goal. Prior to that they lost against Galway (3-2) and Wexford (3-2), with a 1-1 draw against Peamount sandwiched between those defeats.

The Dublin side will be going for goals on Saturday and will have the benefit of last season’s joint top scorers, Joy Ralph and Áine O’Gorman, who scored eight goals apiece, to boost the prospects of a first WPD home victory since mid-March.

Kick-off at Tallaght Stadium on Saturday is at 5pm, and the game will be live on LOITV.