Costello's dismissal tarnishes fine game

A NEW season dawned at a sun splashed Tolka Park last night and a few old truisms were rapidly reinforced. The capacity of Shamrock Rovers and, especially last night, Shelbourne, to rise above unfortunate obstacles remains intact. Sadly, so too does the capacity of referees to provide those obstacles.

A fine, free flowing game wash trundling along nicely after 33 minutes when referee Dick O'Hanlon dismissed Greg Costello. It was a ridiculous decision which irretrievably tarnished the game. Somehow the contest, and especially Shelbourne, rose above, it.

The 80th minute equaliser which John O'Rourke grabbed was the least they deserved, as a win would have flattered a comparatively pedestrian Rovers (until they woke up in the second half). Even then, Shelbourne's football was brighter and quicker in deed and thought.

In a misleading opening, a fresher Rovers began better, but gradually Shelbourne got their passes going, their wing backs came into the game and Tony Sheridan, thriving with the captain's armband for the night, began running at the Rovers back row from the hold behind the front two. Rovers couldn't seem to pick him up.

The quickness of Shelbourne's passing, especially on the break, and their pace around the park, quickly began to make Rovers earlier efforts seem ponderous by comparison. The first warning bells for Rovers came when Gino Brazil inadvertently glanced a deep Declan Geoghegan cross against Alan O'Neill's upright.

John Toal was then booked for leading with his elbow against Sheridan. Never booked in Shelbourne's colours, Sheridan responded by walking away and soon after nutmegged a young Rovers debutant, Pat Dowling.

Pat Scully's aerial threat manifested itself from Costello's sixth corner after 32 minutes, but O'Rourke's shot was charged down. That was sandwiched be tween long range shots from both Shelbourne wing backs. Declan Geoghegan and Pascal Vaudequin.

Pat Fenlon and Toal were chasing shadows at this juncture, but the former made his most decisive contribution thus far after 33 minutes when going in late on Costello, with whom he had clashed earlier.

Costello reacted, which he shouldn't have done, but it was no more than a wave of the foot after Fenlon had moved on. He didn't even make contact. The referee stopped play and, after thinking about it, issued Costello with the red card before giving Fenlon a yellow one.

It will be revealing to see what action the referees' inspector, Pat Daly, takes, if any. No doubt the decision made some sort of logic in O'Hanlon's mind. It certainly didn't for this observer.

At least Shelbourne retained their positive intentions and gave themselves the buffer of a deserved 42nd minute lead. Sheridan took a quick free to Vaudequin and then exchanged passes with the Frenchman, who beat his man on the outside and crossed delightfully for the unmarked Mark Rutherford to suspend himself in mid air and head past O'Neill from six yards.

With the onus and the extra man on Rovers side, they pressed forward, though Shelbourne, with Rutherford withdrawn to midfield, still looked the more incisive on the break. But Rovers' seventh corner of the period yielded a 63rd minute equaliser.

The hitherto anonymous Aaron Lynch delivered a dipping in swinger which Paul Whelan met with a decisive glancing header on the run. Within four minutes they were ahead. Fenlon's long diagonal bail from deep was glanced backwards by David Campbell, who did not realise that Tony Cousins, either a mile offside or anticipating brilliantly had raced clear. He rounded young Darra Donovan to score.

Shelbourne dug deep, none more so than John O'Rourke in midfield, and poured forward whenever they could Stephen Geoghegan had a shot charged down before they equalised after 79 minutes. With Rovers bodies flying everywhere to block a flurry of shots, Sheridan restored order with a first time ball to Rutherford. Sprinting to the line, his cross beat O'Neill for the deserving O'Rourke to head a posse of far post invaders and head home.

Justice, of a sorts, was done with no thanks to the referee.