Saints lose out to Finn Harps on the road
Daire Walsh
St Patrick’s Athletic conceded further ground in the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division title race with a 3-1 defeat to Finn Harps in Ballybofey last night.
Despite Chris Forrester rattling the opposition net at Finn Park, a hat-trick from the outstanding Tunde Owolabi saw the hosts come away with the spoils.
As a consequence of this loss, the Saints remain three points adrift of league leaders Shamrock Rovers with two more games now played.
While all isn’t lost for Stephen O’Donnell’s charges just yet, there is no doubt that the defending champions hold the upper hand in the fight for top spot.
Whereas Pat’s are aiming to build momentum at the summit of the table, Harps find themselves in a battle against the drop.
Although Waterford are all but certainties for an immediate return to the First Division, the Donegal men are one of several teams seeking to avoid falling into the promotion/relegation play-offs at the tail end of the season.
It was a bright opening initially from Pat’s, with Nahum Melvin-Lambert hitting the side-netting at the end of a promising attack.
However, a set-back was to follow just moments later when the Antwerp-born Owolabi fired home at the end of a lung-bursting run.
Yet there was no reason for the visitors to panic and they duly restored parity within a couple of minutes through Forrester’s neatly-struck penalty – after Melvin-Lambert had been fouled inside the box.
Both teams had their share of possession as the half wore on, but it was Harps who ultimately led at the break.
From a ball over the top on 41 minutes, Owalabi doubled his tally for the night with a smooth finish past Vitezslav Jaros.
In a bid to address his side’s 2-1 deficit, O’Donnell introduced debutant Jak Hickman, Darragh Burns and Ronan Coughlan off the bench on the resumption.
Their task became even harder, however, when Owolabi added a third on 56 minutes.
Although another substitute – Kyrian Nwoko – hit the woodwork in the 84th-minute, the Inchicore outfit couldn’t pull off a dramatic fightback and went home empty-handed.