MICHAEL O'NEILL'S reign as Shamrock Rovers boss ended in a disappointing loss to Tottenham Hotspur in a one-sided UEFA Europa League Group A tie at Tallaght Stadium.

 

While critics will point to the fact that the Hoops failed to pick up a point from their first foray into the group stages of a UEFA competition, there can be no argument that Rovers had done Irish soccer proud this year.

 

The Airtricity League champions had entered unchartered waters for an Irish club by reaching this stage and it was always going to be a major ask given the size of the budgets of their opponents once they got there.

 

For manager O'Neill it was a farewell as he had announced prior to the game that he was moving on after failing to agree on a new deal with the club. The Hoops fans showed their appreciation at the final whistle.

 

 

Rovers started brightly but the closest they came to threatening the Spurs goal was a shot wide from Ken Oman in the 12th minute after the visitors failed to clear a Billy Dennehy free-kick.

 

Jermaine Defoe posted notice of his quality in the 21st minute when he had a strike from outside the box comfortably held by Hoops keeper Richard Brush.

 

Home skipper Dan Murray had a chance to open the scoring three minutes later but his header from a Dennehy corner bounced into the hands of keeper Carlo Cudicini.

 

Brush had a let off in the 28th minute when a left-wing cross by Danny Rose floated over his head but landed on the roof of the Hoops crossbar.

 

Less than a minute later Steven Pienaar gave Tottenham the lead when he sweeping cross-shot after to take a minor deflection off a Rovers defender’s outstretched leg and the spin took the ball into the far side of the home net.

 

That kick-started a Spurs assault on the home goal and poor defending proved to the home side’s downfall. In fairness Andros Towsend’s curling effort into the roof of the net from just outside the box after a 38th minute one-two with Defoe was a classy finish.

 

But the Hoops defence was all at sea just on half-time when Townsend fed Defoe with a low cross from the left and the England international turned in the six-yard box before slotting home with ease.

 

Rovers came out fighting after the break and after Karl Sheppard went down under a Jake Livermore challenge in a one-on-one situation minutes after the restart the home fans were incensed when the referee waved play on.

 

Substitute Stephen O’Donnell had a low strike narrowly off target in the 61st minute.

 

Three minutes later Brazilian midfielder Sandro was unfortunate to hit the Rovers upright with an unusual lofted shot that deceived keeper Brush.

 

Sheppard was involved in another controversial incident in the 71st minute when he appeared to be taken down in the box by Livermore but once again referee Stephan Studer waved away the appeal.

 

Tottenham substitute Iago Falque came close to adding a fourth when he produced a decent strike from outside the box in the 87th minute.

 

Pat Sullivan - the man whose goal against Partizan Belgrade had sent Rovers through to the group stages - was denied a consolation goal for the Hoops in the 88th minute by a good save from Cudicini.

 

Tottenham eventually found the net a fourth time in the 91st minute when he deep left wing cross by Rose was headed down by Townsend and swept home by Harry Kane from close range.

 

 

SHAMROCK ROVERS: Brush; Sullivan, Oman, Murray, Stevens, Rice (O’Donnell 46), Turner, Finn (Twigg 57), Dennehy, Paterson, Sheppard (Kilduff 74).

 

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR: Cudicini; Assou-Ekotto (Falque 84), Kaboul, Livermore, Rose, Pienaar, Kranjar, Sandro, Townsend, Dos Santos, Defoe (Kane 76).

 

REFEREE: S Studer (SUI)