Bray endure nightmare in Tallaght
SHAMROCK ROVERS BRAY WANDERERS 6 0
JUST one more goal from Shamrock Rovers would have seen them inflict a record-equalling defeat on a pitiful Bray Wanderers in a men versus boys contest.
Five goals in the second half - including three goals in seven minutes - made this a trip to Tallaght to forget for the Seagulls.
Trailing 1-0 at the break, the visitors leaked goals in the 47th, 61st, 63rd, 67th and 90th minute and finished this one-sided tie looking demoralised and frustrated.
It was a worrying collapse for the Co. Wicklow side and such a disheartening defeat - and so early in the season - could leave some nasty wounds on this young side.
The last thing Bray needed was to ship an early goal and they didn’t.
Trevor Clarke was buzzing to make his first appearance of the season so overreacted a bit to a Dan McKenna challenge - admittedly, not his finest - in the second minute. Rob Hennessey calmed him down before it became an issue.
McKenna was guilty of a needless shove on the same man in the 11th minute - not something you want to do with free-kick experts Burke and Brandon Miele around.
It was the latter that struck it but the wall did its job and McKenna breathed a sigh of relief.
Burke escaped the right-back’s attention in the 12th minute as he was able to cut back onto his left inside the penalty area. He attempted to whip it inside the far post but it swooshed a foot wide.
When Ethan Boyle conceded possession on the halfway line, Cory Galvin put his jet-heels into motion but Clarke swiped him down with a kick that ended the break and earned him a booking.
McKenna would also eventually make his way into Hennessey’s book when the whistle-blower deemed the on-loan man’s handball deliberate. Rovers had another threatening free kick. Miele laid this one off to Burke but he failed to beat the wall too.
Within two minutes, Burke would find his mark. Ally Gilchrist lifted the ball forward, full debutante Sean Kavanagh laid it inside to Burke and his first-time shot from 28 yards dipped wickedly as it flew over the stationary Aaron Dillon and rattled in off the underside of the crossbar.
Dillon almost suffered a horror show when Kavanagh’s cross floated towards him. Under little pressure, he rose to claim but spilled it almost onto a Rovers toe. He was very lucky to escape without punishment as he grabbed it at the second attempt.
Wanderers enjoyed a decent spell of pressure as half-time approached and Galvin had a cross/shot that Kevin Horgan did well to hold with Greene hovering for a rebound.
A minute later, Greene gave his man the slip inside the area but he narrowed his own angles in doing so and Horgan was able to make the block.
Bray looked to continue their push after the interval as they won the first corner of the match almost straight from kick-off but it was 2-0 moments later.
Rovers broke down the right flank, Burke flicked it on to Kava- nagh and his fizzed low cross left Miele with the simple task of sliding it home at the back post.
With two assists already to his name, Kavanagh decided to try and get the scoresheet next and would have done so had Dillon not flung himself to his right to turn the attacker’s 25-yarder behind.
With Bray needing to chase the game, Mackey threw on Ger Pender for his maiden appearance of the season.
Pender had barely crossed the white line by the time Dan Carr’s cross from the left was met emphatically by David McAllister who ghosted into the area and powered home with his head.
Mackey’s reaction was to ready John Sullivan for action but while the midfielder stood with the fourth offical waiting for the ball to go out of play, Carr was played in to net his first goal as a Hoop.
That can’t have helped Mackey’s mood, which was possibly already soured by Galvin’s reaction to being withdrawn as the winger firmly refused the offer of a handshake before firing his gloves into the dugout.
Having already spurned two free kicks, Rovers left their next one for Kavanagh and he did not disappoint as he drilled it beyond Dillon’s dive to make it 5-0.
Rovers rubbed salt in the wounds in the 90th minute as Sean Boyd out-muscled a weary Hugh Douglas before squaring it for Miele to reach the half dozen.
25. Kevin Horgan; 2. Ethan Boyle, 5. Lee Grace, 15. Ally Gilchrist, 20. Trevor Clarke; 29. Sam Bone, 16. David McAllister; 10. Brandon Miele, 28. Graham Burke, 11. Sean Kavanagh; 9. Dan Carr. Subs: Aaron Bolger for Burke (64); Sean Boyd for Carr (68); Joel Coustrain for Clarke (73). Not used: Tomer Chencinski, Luke Byrne, Roberto Lopes, Gary Shaw.
1. Aaron Dillon;
16. Dan McKenna, 2. Hugh Douglas,
5. Sean Heaney, 3. Kevin Lynch; 22. Darragh Noone, 6. Paul O’Conor; 19. Ronan Coughlan, 21. Gary McCabe,
7. Cory Galvin; 10. Aaron Greene. Subs: Ger Pender for Galvin (60); John Sullivan for O’Conor (63); Conor Kenna for Heaney (80). Not used: Evan Moran, Darragh Gibbons, Daniel Kelly, Jake Kelly. Rob Hennessey. Tallaght Stadium, Dublin.