Finn Harps assistant manager Paul Hegarty was the man in the technical area for against Shamrock Rovers but watched his charges come out on the wrong end of a 4-1 scoreline. The Ballybofey side are in an increasingly perilous position. Second from b
Finn Harps assistant manager Paul Hegarty was the man in the technical area for against Shamrock Rovers but watched his charges come out on the wrong end of a 4-1 scoreline. The Ballybofey side are in an increasingly perilous position. Second from bottom with just four games to play, Harps will have to pay due cognisance to suspended manager Ollie Horgan’s view that every point is ‘priceless’. Fixtures against Dundalk (H), Derry (A), Drogheda (H) and Bohs (A) will complete Harps’ season and it would appear that at least seven points will be required for safety. Horgan will return to the touchline for the Dundalk encounter having served his two-match ban. On the other hand, Rovers’ grip on third place strengthens with every passing week. Derry’s unexpectedly heavy reverse at the hands of Bray leaves the Hoops four points clear of the Candystripes with five games left. Gary Shaw, complete with face mask to protect his jaw injury, opened the scoring and Rovers confirmed their superiority with three second half strikes, courtesy of Brandon Miele and James Doona (2). Rovers skipper Ronan Finn is satisfied with how the season is shaping up for his side. “They’re (Finn Harps) down at the other end of the table and they’re fighting for their lives to stay up. They’re not going to come to Tallaght and roll over. It’s a tough game. You need to work every game.” The Hoops are seeing games out better since the mid-season break. “We’ve got to make sure that if we do go a goal or two up, we don’t let teams back into it. We’ve learned from the start of the season. We’ve now hit a good vein of form.” Finn’s side are still campaigning on two fronts. “We’re in good form at the minute. We’ve two games this weekend that we need to maximise to ensure European football, that’s a must for this club, and when the time comes to play Dundalk we’ll be ready.”
