Shamrock Rovers 2 Derry City 1

Champions Shamrock Rovers came from behind at Tallaght Stadium on Friday night to earn all three points against Derry City in the Airtricity League Premier Division.

Following the concession of an early goal to ex-Hoops star Daniel Lafferty, Lee Grace and Danny Mandroiu fired home to edge Stephen Bradley’s men into the driving seat. Matching the result of St Patrick’s Athletic in their tussle with Drogheda United, this keeps the title holders nine points clear at the summit of the table with a game still in hand.

There was just one change from the Derry side that comfortably defeated Longford Town on a 3-0 scoreline at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium last Friday week, with Jack Malone coming in for Will Fitzgerald. This proved to be a shrewd move on the part of Candystripes boss Ruaidhrí Higgins as the Academy graduate’s excellent set-piece on the left-wing was clinically headed to the net by Lafferty in the sixth-minute. Though this was an early setback for the Hoops, it didn’t take them long to produce an appropriate response. After Richie Towell forced a fine stop out of Derry netminder Nathan Gartside, Rovers skipper Ronan Finn had a shot that was deflected just past the target.

Selected at right wing-back, Finn subsequently became the architect for his side’s equaliser on 19 minutes. He unleashed an enticing cross into the area, where Hoops centre-half Grace was on cue to find the Derry net with a powerful header.

While Rovers were expected to push on for the remainder of the opening period, diligent defence from Derry looked set to leave the teams inseparable at the break. That was until Mandroiu capitalised on superb build-play by Rory Gaffney to fire to the bottom right-hand corner on the stroke of half-time.

This left Rovers in a strong position on the resumption, but Lafferty’s close-range miss off a Malone corner on 52 minutes was a reminder that the Candystripes still posed a threat on the night. Derry went on to enjoy a sustained spell of possession, before Rovers pushed hard for a third goal past the hour mark.

Gaffney had a header turned away by the outstretched arm of Gartside, while Roberto Lopes and Dylan Watts were narrowly wide of the mark as the Hoops sought to place the outcome beyond doubt.

Clear-cut opportunities were few and far between inside the final-quarter with Derry doing their best to make life difficult for the home team. Nevertheless with Aaron Greene, Chris McCann and lively teenager Aidomo Emakhu adding fresh legs off the bench, Rovers comfortably saw out the game to move a step closer to back-to-back league crowns.

SHAMROCK ROVERS: Mannus; Gannon, Lopes, Grace; Finn, Watts (Greene, 71 mins), O’Neill, Cotter (McCann, 79 mins); Mandroiu (Farrugia, 79 mins), Towell; Gaffney (Emakhu, 84 mins).

DERRY CITY: Gartside; Boyce, Toal, McJannet, Lafferty; Malone (Fitzgerald, 75 mins), Harkin, Hery (McLaughlin, 65 mins), Ogedi-Uzokwe; Akintunde, McGonigle.

Referee: P McLaughlin (Donegal).