SSE Airtricity League Premier Division
Sligo Rovers 0
Derry City 2
(Patteron 16, Ronan Hale 75)
Goals in each half from Rory Patterson and Ronan Hale secured a fifth win in a row for Derry City at the Showgrounds last night.
Patterson netted an early free, and Irish U21 international Hale fired home to second as struggling Sligo Rovers lost at home for the fifth time in six games.
Derry were without the injured Darren Cole, so former Rovers favourite Gavin Peers was handed his first appearance for the visitors at centre-back.
And it was Derry that took the initiative from the start, and after a dominant opening 15 minutes, Irish U21 international Ronan Curtis really should have scored when he broke into the area with only the keeper to beat.
Rovers netminder Micháel Schlingermann made a fine stop, but Derry managed to break the deadlock almost straight after.
Rhys McCabe tripped Aaron McEneff at the edge of the box as he broke onto the rebound, and Patterson stepped up to drive the free-kick low to the bottom corner via a deflection.
Rovers made a triple change just before the hour-mark, as Seamus Sharkey, Raffaele Cretaro and Eduardo Pinceli were all introduced. And Brazilian Pinceli almost picked out Greg Moorhouse with a good flick into the area, but the striker couldn’t connect.
And Rovers were left to rue that missed opportunity just a minute later, as Curtis, Patterson and Rory Hale were all involved in setting up Ronan Hale to fire low under Schlingermann from the edge of the box.
SLIGO: Schlingermann, Boylan, Callan-McFadden (Sharkey 59), McClean, Waters, McAleer, McCabe, Cawley, Roy (Pinceli 59), Morgan (Cretaro 59), Moorhouse.
DERRY: Doherty, McDermott, Toal, Peers, Doyle, Low, Rory Hale, McEneff, Ronan Hale (McDonagh 75), Curtis (Hopkirk 81), Patterson (Cofie 88).
REF: P McLaughlin.
After the game, Ocean FM’s Darragh Cox spoke with Rovers boss Gerard Lyttle and Derry manager Kenny Shiels…
