Early O’Leary goal gives Ramblers all three points against Shamrock Rovers
U19 SOCCER
Daire Walsh
SHAMROCK ROVERS………………………………… 0
COBH RAMBLERS…………………………………….. 1
A SIXTH minute goal from Stephen O’Leary was the difference between the teams at Tallaght Stadium on Saturday afternoon, when Cobh Ramblers claimed a hard-earned victory over Shamrock Rovers in the SSE Airtricity League U17 Southern Elite Division.
This was the fifth league win on the road for Ramblers, who are now gathering serious momentum in their quest for a top-four finish in the 2016 league – which would guarantee them a place in the end-of-season play-offs.
Cobh had started the weekend in fifth place in the Southern Elite table, with eight wins from 14 games. They were just three points adrift of their third-placed opponents, who they suffered a 2-0 defeat to in St Colman’s Park on April 17.
The two sides are also set to clash later this month in the U17 Mark Farren Memorial Cup quarter-final. Indeed, this is what the visitors managed to do during the early exchanges, as even though Rovers attacker Richie English was narrowly off-target from a free-kick, Cobh broke the deadlock with just over five minutes gone in the play.
Winger Ryan O’Regan lofted a long-distance free-kick into the area, and following flick-ons by several Ramblers players, Stephen O’Leary was on hand to comfortably sweep the ball beyond the reach of Rovers custodian Ben Murray.
This was the ideal opening to the contest for Cobh, who were aiming to extend their unbeaten run – in all competitions – to nine games. Rovers didn’t display any initial signs of panic, though, and after Dean Dillon had effectively closed down Ramblers shotstopper Dan Ruddy on 11 minutes, James McSweeny was forced to kick the ball behind for a corner.
The subsequent set-piece was cleared away to safety, however, and Cobh remained tight and compact throughout the pitch during the first-quarter of the action. Stephen O’Leary attempted to pick out his strike partner Peter Callahan with a precise 22nd-minute cross, but Rovers centre-half Calvin Rogers turned the ball behind.
Clear-cut opportunities were few and far between for the remainder of the half, although Cobh captain Gordon Walker headed narrowly over the Rovers crossbar from another enticing O’Regan delivery just two minutes prior to the interval.
McCarthy would have been pleased to see his side taking a one-goal advantage into the second period, but with Rovers making a number of positional switches during the break, they had to be on their toes when the action resumed.
Rovers’ Dillon almost created an opening four minutes into the half, but the dependable Walker was in the right position to intercept his pass. Cobh were being pushed back to a degree by the Hoops, but they continued to gather a large amount of possession, particularly through the likes of Alex Connolly and O’Regan in the wide areas.
Rovers (who are managed by former centre-half Aidan Price) introduced Jack Priestley in an effort to inject some much-needed life into their line-up, but Cobh responded almost immediately by bringing Alex Smith into the play.
Goalscorer Stephen O’Leary made way for Ross Slevin with 18 minutes remaining in the tie, and Ruddy was relieved to see Rogers’ speculative strike from 35 yards just clearing the woodwork moments later.
There were some anxious moments for Cobh in the dying moments, but they ultimately held on for a hard-earned triumph over the south Dublin outfit.
SHAMROCK ROVERS: Ben Murray; Conor Fitzharris (Jack Priestley 63), Sean Callan, Calvin Rogers, Eric Abulu; Adam Doyle, Harry Cornally, Cian Collins (Declan Watters 57), Kenny Cunningham (Dean Williams 85); Richie English; Dean Dillon.
COBH RAMBLERS: Dan Ruddy; Kajus Vitkevicius, James McSweeny, Gordon Walker, John Browne; Alex Connolly (Alex Smith 63), Rueben Henry, Conor O’Leary, Ryan O’Regan; Stephen O’Leary (Ross Slevin 72), Peter Callanan (Daniel Lucey 86).