Hoops regain momentum in Premier Division with win over Waterford
By Daire Walsh
Champions Shamrock Rovers moved three points clear at the summit of the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division table courtesy of a 4-1 triumph against Waterford at the Regional Sports Centre last night.
Having fallen behind to an early goal from Eric Molloy in the south-east, the Hoops subsequently fired back through Graham Burke to leave the sides on level terms at the break.
Burke added his second of the contest on the resumption and, with Rory Gaffney and Aaron Greene finding the target either side of it, it was a job well done for Stephen Bradley’s men.
The form of the title holders hasn’t been perfect in recent times, with the Tallaght outfit only securing one win from the five games they played prior to yesterday’s fare.
However with previous top-flight leaders Sligo Rovers suffering a second consecutive defeat at the hands of St Patrick’s Athletic, the Hoops are once again the clear front-runners.
It was a nightmare start to the proceedings for Rovers in Waterford as Molloy found space down the left-wing in the sixth-minute and unleashed a deflected strike beyond the reach of netminder Alan Mannus.
Despite this set-back, Rovers didn’t panic and were back on level terms within 12 minutes. After Sean Gannon’s cross from the right was adjudged to have been handled by a Waterford defender, Burke coolly slotted the resulting penalty to the net.
Both teams had their opportunities in the remaining minutes of the opening period, but were ultimately separable at the break.
Yet there was only one team in the reckoning for three points after the restart. Capitalising on a defensive error, the in-form Gaffney angled a fierce shot to the bottom right-hand corner to edge the visitors back into the ascendancy on 48 minutes.
This was the catalyst for a dominant second half from Rovers and Burke doubled his tally with a close-range finish from a precise Greene pass. Having turned provider for the third Hoops goal, Kilnamanagh’s Greene was released by Gaffney for a smooth strike to the net on the third-quarter mark to round off a professional performance by Bradley’s troops.