ALAN O'NElLL made his debut for Sligo Rovers on Saturday night at the Brandywell and the goal keeper played an integral role in guaranteeing his side a share of the spoils against Derry City.
The former Shamrock Rovers boss pulled off a string of quality stops throughout the second half as Derry dominated, but they failed to breach a stubborn Sligo defence.
Derry striker Liam Coyle also made a return to action as the 52nd minute substitute but his hopes of a dream return were also denied by O'Neill. In the 71st minute the keeper blocked Coyle's shot in a one on one situation and, minutes later, the Derry front man, put the ball over the crossbar from close range.
Derry skipper Peter Hutton had a powerful volley beaten off the Sligo goal line by Mark Hutchinson while striker Sean Hargan, squandered a glorious opportunity when he crashed the ball against a post with only O'Neill to beat from close range.
Sligo could actually have stolen the points late in the match but Derry goalkeeper Tony O'Dowd reacted superbly to turn Chris Twiddy's 20 yard drive around his post.
Overall the match proved disappointing for the 3,500 attendance but both sides have preserved their unbeaten records.
