Nugent’s heroics are a welcome recent addition

IT’S been one of the more predictable seasons following Sligo Rovers. Even the more optimistic among the lot of us would hardly have predicted Rovers to win 3- 0 against Dundalk in their own back yard. It was a thoroughly enjoyable night to be a Rovers fan, and equally almost as torturous after we went ahead and Dundalk slaughtered us for a period, but they just couldn’t score.

Even at 2- 0 up, I don’t think I’ll be alone in saying I almost expected Dundalk to come back to at least 2- 2 before the game came to an end.

They had their chances. They didn’t take them. We had fewer chances, but we certainly made sure to take them.

The big thing this season has been our form against the top four teams which really has been impressive.

Rovers have been better against the top games, and in games in which they were not expected to pick up anything, they have managed to pull it out of the bag.

From eleven games against the top four this season, we have picked up 15 points. That’s four defeats against the top four all season, but none of those came against Cork City or Derry, both of whom we still have one game against this season.

Our form against Bray, which isn’t pretty this season, doesn’t look so bad when you look at how their season has panned out. Against the table’s current bottom four, Rovers have picked up 19 out of 30 points.

The fact that we haven’t beaten Finn Harps at all this season will be something that will be brought up in every discussion about how the season has gone, but Harps set up very well against Rovers all year, similarly to what we have done to Cork all year.

Three goals on Saturday night made amends for five consecutive games without a goal, and Raff Cretaro and Phil Roberts’ goals were particularly enjoyable. Was that one of Raff’s best ever goals for the club? It’s got to be up there.

But one person who deserves huge credit for performances over the last few weeks has got to be Ciaran Nugent. There were many concerns about Rovers’ defence once Micheal Schlingermann suffered a season ending injury.

And the only competitive game in which we had seen Nugent was the first 4- 0 defeat to Bray. That game did no favours for anyone and it probably wasn’t fair to judge anyone on that game.

Nugent has had to be patient throughout the season, and he’s come to be seen as one of the characters of the squad, or the mad American who enjoys weightlifting.

But he has been immense since coming in for Schlingermann and has pulled off some excellent point blank saves to keep Rovers in games in the last few minutes.

It’s never easy being the sub goalkeeper in any sport at any level, but he’s waited for his chance and once given it, he’s grabbed it with both hands and is deserving of every bit of credit he gets.

The only thing is, it’s hard not to feel slightly aggrieved when you have to watch a game like that on Tuesday night against Harps, compared with that game on Saturday night.

But that’s football I suppose and it makes a victory like that so much more enjoyable when you have had to suffer through a horrendous 0- 0 with Finn Harps.

I know there’s going to be a number of suspensions for Friday night’s game against Longford Town but we should be strong enough to overcome them, as they are pretty much relegated at this stage with just a few games left.

I hate to be clichéd but you’ve always got to be wary against a team who has got something to fight for at this stage of the season, and although Longford should offer very little threat, we struggled to break them down at City Calling Stadium earlier in the season.

With the way this season has gone it could go any way and I would hope the angry gamblers from all parts of the world take a break from betting on Rovers, as they’ve probably lost out significantly with the last two results.

Rovers’ Facebook page has been inundated with angry gamblers who have been less than impressed with recent results.