McAleer caps Sligo rally

SLIGO ROVERS came from behind to pick up a much-needed win against a lacklustre Derry City.

The visitors were the better team in the first half and almost took the lead when Ben Fisk’s pass to Aaron McEneff fell short of its target and Rhys McCabe nipped in and drove a shot which beat Gerard Doherty but came back off the woodwork.

But it was Derry who took the lead on 35 minutes as Dean Shiels picked out Jamie McDonagh on the corner of the penalty area. The ball sat up nicely for the former Sligo man, who volleyed it with the outside of his right foot past the dive of Mitchell Beeney and into the net for his first Derry goal.

Sligo kept at Derry, however, and they got their equaliser on 70 minutes as David Cawley exchanged passes with Lee Lynch before prodding the ball coolly past Doherty and into the corner of the net from just eight yards out.

The game was building up to an exciting finish and Derry thought they had the lead once again when Ronan Hale’s corner was met with a powerful header by Gavin Peers, but Beeney plucked the ball out of the air expertly.

That proved to be a key moment as Sligo broke down the other end immediately and with Derry struggling to get numbers back, Chris Twardek crossed into the area where two team-mates were waiting.

Rhys McCabe just missed the ball but it fell to Caolan McAleer at the back post and he hammered the ball into the roof of the net past an exposed Doherty.

DERRY CITY – G Doherty, D Seaborne, A McEneff, A Splaine, J McDonagh, R Hale, A Roy, B Fisk (R Hale 73), G Peers, D Shiels, K McHattie. SLIGO ROVERS – M Beeney, R Donelan, K McFadden, R McCabe, M Drennan (R Cretaro 66), L Lynch, P McClean, J Keaney (C Twardek 61), J Mahon, D Cawley, L Morrison (C McAleer 76). REF – T Connolly