Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley was delighted his team managed to secure three points against Sligo Rovers at Tallaght Stadium - in a game that the Hoops could have scored a lot more in. The home side dominated the game from start to finish
Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley was delighted his team managed to secure three points against Sligo Rovers at Tallaght Stadium - in a game that the Hoops could have scored a lot more in.
The home side dominated the game from start to finish but a mixture of wasteful finishing and a masterclass from Sligo keeper Michael Schlingermann restricted them to a 1-0 victory.
“We are delighted with the win,” said Bradley. “I think if you look at the performance, especially second half, and the chances we created; you have to be very happy with the performance.”
Rovers’ task was made easier by referee Neil Doyle when he sent off Sligo’s John Russell after 23 minutes for lunging into a two-footed tackle on Roberto Lopes.
“Sometimes it is harder to play against ten because you have a lot of the ball and they don’t have to come out; they can sit in and try to hit you on the break. They were dangerous at doing that so we needed to be patient and move the ball quicker. I thought the goal would come and thankfully it came quick in the second half and we settled right down,” said Bradley.
Rovers enjoyed spells of excellent build-up play throughout the game, which impressed Bradley, while he praised the performance of Graham Burke.
“I keep saying that they will only get better with time. You look at what Cork are doing and they’ve been together four years. We are together since December so they will only get better once they start to understand each other on the pitch.
“There are not many in the league who can play the way Graham plays. I keep saying he plays on the half turn and there are probably only two or three players who can play at that level. He came to us having not played a lot of football so he’ll only get fitter and stronger.”
