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Sligo Rovers 1 Dundalk 3
Sunday, 05 April 2009 22:04


Darren Mansaram, Liam Burns and Chris Turner returned to haunt their former club as Dundalk beat Sligo Rovers 3-1 at The Showgrounds.

Striker Mansaram claimed the plaudits for Dundalk's first goal on 38 minutes, which came about following a terrible mix-up in the Rovers defence.

Burns doubled the lead on 64 minutes when he headed Harpal Singh's cross past Richard Brush, and Turner then slid home the third after latching onto Mansaram's pass.

Raffaele Cretaro pulled one back for Rovers, but Owen Morrison blazed a late penalty over the bar to compound the home side's misery.

Dundalk, with boss Sean Connor forced to watch from the stands as he began a four-game touchline ban, made two changes to the side beaten by St Pat's, with Simon Kelly favoured over Shaun Kelly, and Tiarnan Mulvenna handed a first start in place of the injured Declan O'Brien.

Rovers made three changes. Romuald Boco started at right-back, while Raffaele Cretaro returned from suspension and Steve Feeney was handed a first start of the season up front.

Boco, normally a striker for Rovers, had the game's first chance when Owen Morrison's quick free set him loose, but Dundalk keeper Chris Bennion got down well to make the save.

Rovers dominated the opening ten minutes, earning four corners in that period, with Cretaro particularly lively. The nippy forward created another shooting chance when he nutmegged Thomas Heary, but Liam Burns rushed out to block.

But it was Dundalk that came closest to opening the deadlock, when former Rovers midfielder Chris Turner skipped past two challenges in the centre of the park before rattling a left-foot shot off the crossbar.

Dundalk then made the breakthrough on 38 minutes after a horrible mix-up in the Rovers defence. Richard Brush dropped George O'Callaghan's delivery in the area, and in the ensuing chaos, an attempted clearance rebounded off Darren Mansaram before crossing the line.

Rovers started brightly in the second half, when Cretaro's powerful cross from the right was headed narrowly over the top by Feeney in the opening minutes.

Rovers' Mauro Almeida marked his return from injury after 60 minutes, with Boco pushing forward into an advanced position.

But Dundalk doubled their advantage on 64 minutes, with two former Rovers players involved. Singh swung in a free-kick and centre-back Liam Burns rose highest to head home.

They made it 3-0 ten minutes later, when Mansaram slipped a neat pass into the run of Chris Turner, who confidently slid the ball past Brush and into the net.

But Rovers pulled one back just a minute later when Cretaro managed to direct the ball to the net from close range following Richie Ryan's industry down the left.

That was as good as it was to get for the home side, however, as Morrison shot a penalty over the bar in the final minutes to end all hopes of a comeback.

Sligo: Brush, Boco, Peers, Keane (Torpey 82), Holmes, Morrison, O'Grady (captain), Ryan, Doherty (Almeida 61), Cretaro, Feeney (McTiernan 68).

Dundalk: Bennion, Simon Kelly, Burns, Heary (Shaun Kelly 24), Rogers, Mulvenna (Mackle 68), Daly, Turner, Singh, O'Callaghan, Mansaram.

Referee: N Doyle.
 
 
 
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