Rovers cruise into league decider
By William O’Connor
SHAMROCK Rovers cruised into the National League Under 15 Final following a comprehensive 6-1 victory over Dundalk in Roadstone on Saturday.
The Tallaght side impressed throughout this encounter and took the game right to the Lilywhites in the early stages.
Kevin Zefi is congratulated by his Rovers team mates after scoring in their National Under 15 League semi final. (Photo by Robert Goggins)
The pressure paid off for Rovers after 11 minutes when good work from Kevin Zefi saw him find Eureal Abidoye and he made no mistake from close range.
This was a huge lift for Rovers and they impressed spreading the ball from wing to wing and exposing the Dundalk rearguard.
It took the visitors some time to settle and they found themselves on the backfoot again – this time Rovers opening up the defence again and Zefi doubling their lead on 14 minutes.
This score rattled Dundalk, but to their credit they soaked up the pressure and eventually found a way through when Nikita Adrenkente guided the ball past Reece Byrne.
Just before that the Rovers netminder made an incredible triple save before they went close to a third at the other end when Edwin Agbaje had a shot blocked.
However three minutes after Dundalk opened their account, Rovers restored their two-goal cushion when Michael Leddy was put through and he made no mistake from close range.
Dundalk keeper Lee Morris kept Rovers at bay with a couple of good saves before Abidoye scored his second to put the contest beyond reach just before the interval.
The Louth side were always chasing the game as they were 4-1 down at the interval but they did start the second half in positive fashion.
Still, a number of substitutes were made and Rovers made it 5-1 when John Ryan did well to gain control of the ball, beat his marker and slot it to the back of the net.
Rovers rounded off a solid performance when Roland Olakanye broke through the Dundalk defence and calmly slotted home.
“I’m delighted for the players that we have reached a league final,” said Shamrock Rovers manager Thomas Morgan.
“We are only with the players 18-months and to get to the final is great. Dundalk are a good side and we knew that we had to play to our best to get to the final.
“We are looking forward to the final and hopefully we can get the same support as we did last Saturday. The support from families and friends was fantastic.”.
Rovers will face off against either Dublin rivals St Patrick’s Athletic or Bohemians in the final. Their penultimate round fixture was due to be played on Tuesday but it has been put back a week due to a water logged pitch.
SHAMROCK ROVERS: R Byrne, S Jones Carey, J Ryan, E Abidere, S Curtis, B Curtis, E Abidoye, A Zayo, M Leddy, E Agbaje, K Zefi
DUNDALK: L Morris, A Morris, C O’Reilly, J McCormack, C Moore, A O’Brien, N ; K McArdle, K Britzins, L O’Donnell, J Walters
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