Kris Twardek says the self-belief Liam Buckley has instilled into the current Sligo Rovers team, is what has made them so hard to beat recently. Rovers have lost just once in their last ten outings, heading into the mid-season break five points off
Kris Twardek says the self-belief Liam Buckley has instilled into the current Sligo Rovers team, is what has made them so hard to beat recently. Rovers have lost just once in their last ten outings, heading into the mid-season break five points off the top four. Speaking after Rovers’ enthralling stalemate with Cork City on Friday night, Twardek says there is a new felt self-confidence about the Showgrounds outfit. “We look like scoring goals”, he said. “There’s belief every time we go a goal down. Not only that, there’s potential to win every game and that was the case against Cork. Everyone had that collective belief we could do it. Unfortunately, the few missed chances are the difference between the draw and the three points.” Rovers struggled to find their feet early on in this one, falling behind to a powerful Graham Cummins volley. But the Bit O’Red bounced back through ex-Rebel Ronan Coughlan who pounced to head Daryl Fordyce’s assist past Mark McNulty mid-way through the opening half. Sligo went on to dominate large parts of this game, although either side could have taken all three points with chances at either end late on. “The immediate feeling is disappointment because we’ve had chances to win the game”, Twardek points out. “The first ten minutes we were poor but we’ve gone on to dominate them for 70 minutes or so. So that’s a positive and as the season’s gone on, there have been more and more positives.” The once Canadian international signed for the north westerners mid-way through last season and has been in and out of the team in recent weeks, completing a full game just twice in Sligo’s last five. “For me it’s been frustrating because I haven’t been consistently in the team”, he continued. “I’m out one week and starting the next, so from a personal point of view it was great to get the 90 minutes under my belt tonight.” Rovers have struggled to turn draws into wins at the Showgrounds this term, but have shown huge improvements from last year’s abysmal home form which saw them emerge victorious just four times in 18 games. Commenting on home fortunes, Twardek says: “We’re picking up points at home and that’s massively important. “Last season, I think we only had one or two wins at home after I joined. We’ve beaten both Shams and Dundalk at home, so we’re getting points off big teams here.” Predominantly a winger, Kris’ versatility has been tested this season, having lined out in several different positions for Rovers. The 22-year-old was used in the middle two of a Buckley diamond on Friday night and shone as one of Sligo’s brightest stars in the game. For Twardek, he’s happy to play wherever he’s asked. “One week you’re right back against Michael Duffy and the next you’re a striker down in Cork. So it’s all about being adaptable and going with the flow”, he says. “I enjoyed playing in the middle tonight because you’re not isolated out wide. You can drift in and out and it makes it more unpredictable for the opposition full back.”
