SSE Airtricity League Premier Division
Sligo Rovers 0
Limerick 0
Ten-man Sligo Rovers were left hanging on for a point at the Showgrounds last night.
Centre-back John Mahon saw red for two bookable offences with ten minutes left, but Rovers earned a point thanks to their second successive scoreless draw at home.
Rovers were without three first choice defenders in Gary Boylan, Patrick McClean and Regan Donelon, and recalled Seamus Sharkey as a makeshift right-back.
Limerick travelled without nine senior players, and had Billy Dennehy at full-back and Eoin Wearen at centre-half.
A first half lacking quality did have one minute of genuine excitement as Limerick hit the Rovers crossbar twice in the space of 60 seconds.
Firstly Cian Coleman’s looping header dropped over the head of the back-pedalling Mitchell Beeney, and bounced off the bar.
And almost immediately after, Rhys McCabe tripped Shane Duggan at the edge of the box, and former Rovers winger Daniel Kearns rattled the crossbar with the free-kick.
Rovers’ best chances of the opening half came shortly after that, as Brendan Clarke was twice forced in to sharp saves to deny efforts from Lewis Morrison and McCabe inside the area.
Eoin Wearen flashed a header narrowly wide from a Kearns corner early in the second half, before both sides looked to their benches on the hour-mark to try and find a winner.
Rovers subs Raff Cretaro and Ally Roy combined with 15 minutes left, but Wearen made a crucial challenge before Mahon was sent-off at the other end.
SLIGO: Beeney, Sharkey, Callan-McFadden, Mahon, Waters, Wixted, McCabe (Pinceli 90+2), Cawley, Keaney, McAleer (Roy 61), Morrison (Cretaro 61).
LIMERICK: Clarke, Kelly, Cantwell, Whitehead, B Dennehy (Walsh-O’Loughlin 62), K O’Sullivan (Fitzgerald 61), Coleman, Duggan, Wearen, Kearns, M O’Sullivan.
REF: A Buttimer.
