SSE Airtricity League Bit O’Red finally find their Max Mata nets a brace and Wilson Waweru scores from a brilliant backheel as Rovers end home goal drought in 3-1 defeat of Drogheda United
SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division Sligo Rovers Drogheda United
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HE DRY spell is over. After three blanks at home this season Sligo Rovers are finally scoring at The Showgrounds.
Last Saturday’s 3-1 defeat of Drogheda United, although nervy, was relished on several fronts – it was the team’s first win at the Sligo venue in this season’s SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division and the first competitive game this year in which Rovers netted after scoreless outings against title hopefuls Derry City, current leaders Shelbourne and champions Shamrock Rovers.
Max Mata, back on loan, bagged a brace to add to the two goals he scored in the away drubbing of Dundalk on March 4, while Wilson Waweru – or should that be Wilson Woweru such was the quality of his backheel goal – scored his first competitive goal for the Bit O’Red.
Leading 2-0 at half-time via those Mata goals, Rovers were later hugely irritated when Drogheda player Andrew Quinn’s 58th minute goal gave the visitors a foothold.
Indeed, home nerves were only soothed with four minutes of normal time left when Wilson Waweru scored the kind of goal that goes viral on social media.
This result – a second win in six games – pushes Rovers up to third in the standings but such is the closeness of the top flight that only three points separates Rovers in third from eighthplaced St Patrick’s Athletic, who have won the same amount of games (two).
Having already kept three clean sheets in 2024, with two of these shutouts coming at home against the attacking expertise of Derry City and Shamrock Rovers, it was ironic that Rovers should concede against the Louth club.
While Drogheda certainly won’t be in the silverware shake-up, with a battle for survival most likely, they were a consistent thorn in Rovers’ side last season as the Bit O’Red failed to beat Kevin Doherty’s side in five games.
Always a threat through Evan Weir’s set-piece deliveries, Drogheda had the inventive Darragh Markey and a useful frontman in the form of Frantz Pierrot who proved a handful for the home side’s defence until the Rovers’ centre-back pairing of Nando Pijnaker and Ollie Denham eventually
United and the custodian saved efforts from Frantz Pierrot, twice, and ex-Rovers man Jack Keaney.
It was Ed McGinty’s second stop to rebuff Frantz Pierrot, a 75th minute parry, that was simply an outstanding piece of goalkeeping. Haitian international Pierrot, who scored 22 times for Athlone Town in last year’s SSE Airtricity Men’s First Division, seemed certain to head home substitute Aaron McNally’s cross from the left. He didn’t, though, and it stayed at 2-1.
The one shot that McGinty didn’t get to was a fine 42nd minute drive from Warren Davis – but Rovers survived because the ball came off the inside of the post and rebounded back into play.
Ed McGinty was among several standouts for the home side, as Connor Malley, team captain Niall Morahan, Max Mata and Nando Pijnaker each made an impression, so too substitutes Kailan Barlow and Will Fitzgerald. Rein Smit, a new attacking option at the club, came off the bench to make a useful cameo.
Rovers had to weather an early storm, including a third minute chance that Frantz Pierrot somehow didn’t convert, and it took two similarly slick combinations to unlock Drogheda.
The deadlock was broken after 21 minutes. Nando Pijnaker regained possession and then Niall
The number of goals scored by on-loan striker Max Mata in six appearances this year.