Finn hoping for better return against St Pat’s
SHAMROCK Rovers midfielder Ronan Finn has stressed the importance of the Hoops bettering the return they got from last season’s encounters with Dublin rivals St Patrick’s Athletic in their push for the title this season.
The two sides meet again tonight (Friday) in Tallaght with both level in the Premier Division on seven points apiece.
Shamrock Rovers' Finn is set for a tough clash with neighbours St Patrick's Athletic on Friday night
Rovers managed to harvest just a solitary point from their three meetings with the Inchicore side last season, and it is something, Finn insists, they need to rectify this time around.
“It was a poor return for us against Pat’s last season,” he told The Echo.
“We finished third in the table and when we look back on it, we dropped eight points against them.
“We’ve shown the levels we can reach against Derry and against Bray and we’ve got to get back to that when we play Pat’s.
“We’re under no illusions. This is going to be a tough game. Pat’s have had some good results themselves and will be coming here looking to get those three points.
Confident we can win
“We’ve got the quality there in the team and I’m confident we can win this one, but you have earn every three points you get in this league. You’ve got to earn the right to play,” he stressed.
Stephen Bradley’s men may be coming into this match on the back of a 1-0 loss to defending champion Cork City, but they hit no less than 12 goals in their previous two games that saw them rout Derry and Bray.
“The loss to Cork was disappointing,” said Finn. “We probably played in fits and starts, and didn’t have that sustained period of dominance.
“They got their penalty and dug in. We had chances and they had chances, but it just shows you how important getting that one goal can be.”
Pat’s will be in confident mood themselves coming into this match having recently beaten Bohemians away and battled out a scoreless draw against Dundalk.
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