Soccer
After brilliant run, Rovers look back to the future
By Daire Walsh
THE DUST may only have settled on another successful season, but Shamrock Rovers defender Roberto Lopes is already casting an eye towards emulating one of the Tallaght club’s greatest ever feats in 2023.
Back in the 1980s, Rovers were crowned League of Ireland champions four seasons on the bounce – from 1983/84 through to 1986/87. Having just secured their third consecutive top-flight title, Lopes and his Hoops team-mate will have a golden opportunity to match this achievement next year.
“There was huge motivation this year obviously. You want to win the league, but when you look at what was at stake, we had the opportunity to go three in-a-row. It puts us in a position now where we can go and emulate that great team of the 80s. Try to match the four in-a-row target. It will be a huge motivation for us now next year to try and retain the league again, and be on a par with that great team,” Lopes acknowledged.
While Jim McLaughlin was at the helm for the opening three years of that memorable run in the 80s, Dermot Keely took over as player-manager for their record-breaking 86/87 campaign. A league winner as a Rovers midfielder in 2010, Stephen Bradley has been in the dugout for all three of their recent league victories.
Although his son Josh’s ongoing battle with leukaemia means he can’t afford to look too far into the future, Crumlin native Lopes is hopeful Bradley will continue in his current role for some time to come.
“The longer he’s here, we’ll be happy. With the chance to do the four in-a-row, it’s not something that anyone would walk away from lightly. We’re talking about a feat that has only ever been done once. It hasn’t been done since and that was an incredible team.
“To be able to match that, there’s huge hunger and ambition to stay there and try and deliver. If things were to develop in his family life and his career, it’s something that he’d have to think of. I think he’ll make the right decision for him and his family when it comes to it.”
The entire Rovers squad have rallied behind the Bradley family during what is proving to be a very difficult time for them. This was in evidence at Tallaght Stadium on October 30, when Lopes, Josh and Hoops’ club captain Ronan Finn all lifted the Premier Division trophy together in the aftermath of a 1-0 win over nearest title challengers Derry City.
“We heard the news about Josh earlier on in the season, what the gaffer and his family were going through. We made it part of our business that we weren’t just doing it for ourselves. We wanted to give that moment to Josh and give him a bit of a lift.
“Because he’s going through an incredible battle off the field. That moment, that memory, that was a really enjoyable factor for us and for the manager especially,” Lopes added.