Two goal Rovers sweep past Shelbourne to extend lead at the top

Shamrock Rovers 2 Shelbourne 0

Fireworks in the stands followed by early fireworks on the pitch as Richie Towell’s strike after just 66 seconds set Shamrock Rovers up for a comfortable 2-0 victory over Shelbourne in the latest iteration of an Airtricity League Dublin derby.

Graham Burke counterattacked down the right flank of Tallaght Stadium as the clock ticked towards one minute, feeding Rory Gaffney for the cross. The ball was cleverly let go on the edge of the area by Dylan Watts, allowing Towell to smash home into the bottom corner with a pin-point first-time effort.

To be fair to Shels, their ploy of dropping three men relatively deep in front of the defence largely worked thereafter. It took Rovers until the 30th minute to work their way through again, Towell’s sweeping ball from one flank to the other taking out all three of said midfielders. Andy Lyons was on the receiving end, feeding Gaffney just inside the box. His deft first touch took the ball away from the defender, allowing enough space to bury it into the bottom corner.

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Two chances from the edge of the area, two goals. It was a clinical return that contrasted Shels’ fortunes in the final third. They had no shortage of opportunities to play the killer ball, delicate touches from strikers Seán Boyd and Jack Moylan when dropping deep drawing Rovers defenders out of position, only for the final ball that followed to be misdirected time and again.

Their best first-half chances both resulted in blocks on efforts from the busy Boyd, a Roberto Lopes intervention a particularly desperate one after Alan Mannus’s poor clearance while off his line left the Rovers goal wide open.

After starting the first half with a bang, the hosts threatened to do the same following the break when Lyons’s cross saw both Gaffney and Watts let fly, only to be blocked.

Duff took Jack Moylan off on the hour, reverting to a lone striker and a higher press, but instead it was Rovers who worked the next chance of note. Ronan Finn’s hard run to the edge of the area led to his first effort being blocked before the second stung Brendan Clarke’s palms.

Burke and John Ross Wilson fluffed decent chances from crosses at either end, but neither goalkeeper was troubled in the closing stages as Rovers wrapped up the win, increasing their lead at the top of the table to eight points.

SHAMROCK ROVERS: Mannus; Hoare, Lopes, Kavanagh; Finn (capt)(Farrugia, 79), Towell, O’Neill, Lyons (Grace, 80); Burke, Gaffney (Greene, 79), Watts (McCann, 80).

SHELBOURNE: Clarke; O’Driscoll, Griffin, Byrne (capt); Farrell, Lunney, Hakiki (Ledgwidge, 59), Dervin (Molloy, 66), Kane; Boyd, Moylan (Wilson, 59)

Referee: Robert Hennessy