Rovers lay down a marker as St Pat’s bounce back in Cork

THE massive news coming out of League of Ireland this weekend is Shamrock Rovers stamping their authority and showing why their contenders for four league titles in a row reports Scott Mahon.

They welcomed arch rivals Bohemians to Tallaght stadium on Friday.

Filled with an ever-growing atmosphere and a highly anticipated 90 minutes.

A game that was highlighted on some controversial calls from the referees.

It was Rovers who piped in front when the ball fell kindly to Trevor Clarke in the six-yard box, and he made no mistake from a somewhat unmissable finish.

Notching his 3rd in his last 4 games.

The goal was skeptical with there being a hint that the Crumlin United schoolboy was offside.

However, this wasn’t to be the most controversial decision of the game.

Bohemians came out in the second half with a vengeance.

Attack after attack on Leon Pöhls between the sticks as they pressed for an equalizer. The defining moment of the game came in the 77th minute.

Tallaght native Johnathan Afolabi was bearing down on goal after a miscued back pass from Gary O’Neill.

The striker looked as though he was clipped in a last-ditch tackle from Hoops center half Daniel Cleary.

To the surprise of everyone in the stadium, no penalty was given.

At a time when Bohs were the better side it could have been a totally different outcome after 90 minutes if the league leaders had got the penalty.

To add insult to injury, Rovers sealed the result only moments later.

Rory Gaffney marked his return from injury with a poacher’s instinct score after he latched onto the deflected strike from Graham Burke at the back post.

The 2-0 result for the Hoops cuts the gap at the top of the table to 1 point.

A fixture for the ages and I’m sure will be viewed upon as what feels like more than 3 points for Rovers at the end of the season as they are 2 for 2 against their biggest rivals this season.

Next up for the Hoops is a trip to the Bowl as they face UCD who sit rock bottom of the table this coming Friday.

St Pat’s gave us a captivating fixture in Turners Cross last week.

Looking to find their form once again, this time under new management.

This fixture saw both sides have interim managers take charge following Tim Clancy and Colin Healy departing respectively.

Inchicore man Jon Daly took charge for the Saints. Pats came out on top to end their 3-game losing streak with goals coming from Jack Mulraney, Conor Carty and 18-year-old academy product Adam Murphy.

Murphy substituted on as the Saints went in search of a winner and helped his side claim all three points with a cultured chip over the on-rushing Cork keeper.

The Saints will be looking to rejuvenate a winning run to climb up the table and the next opportunity for 3 points is this Friday as they welcome Drogheda United to Richmond Park.

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