Hoops looking to roll on
SHAMROCK Rovers will be looking to hold on to third place in the Airtricity League’s Premier Division when they travel to the Brandywell on Saturday to take on Derry City.
While the Candystripes did bag the EA Sports Cup at the expense of Cobh last weekend, their recent form on the league front has not been so impressive.
Indeed defeats at the hands of Bohemians, Waterford and Sligo have left them without a point from their last three outings and has consequently seen them slip to seventh place.
"I’m sure they’ll want a reaction after what happened against Bohs. It’s going to be a tough game but we’ve just got to reach our standards and see where that takes us,” said Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley.
“We’ve got to be prepared for Derry wanting to put their results in the past week right, and we have to be ready for that.
“Out of all the times that we played Derry this season, I thought that was our best performance [at the Brandywell in April]. We just couldn’t score on the day. It’s strange how it works. This year we’ve beaten them twice and drawn with them but none of that matters on Saturday.
“It’ll be a difficult game because I’m sure they’ll react.
“There are big game games for us and Waterford to go [to get third place]. There’s going to be points dropped somewhere along the line but all we can do is focus on Derry, we can’t think about the other four games. We’ve no new injuries, only Trevor Clarke, Dave McAllister and Luke Byrne.
Rovers have harvested all nine points in their last three games, bouncing back strongly from a Dublin derby loss to Bohs with victories over Limerick, Bray Wanderers and current leaders Dundalk.
Another one this weekend will keep them out of reach of a Waterford outfit that sits just two points behind.
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