Lack of leaders costing Rovers in vital games

SLIGO Rovers’ dreadful start to the new season continued on Saturday night with a humbling at the hands of champions Dundalk at the Showgrounds. Not dissimilar to the game in Limerick the week previous, the Bit O’Red were beaten by half- time. Two down to two avoidable goals, there was never any way back against the country’s best team by some distance.

Again, the share of the blame from supporters lay at the door of manager Dave Robertson. There were rumblings of discontent from the start. Kieran Sadlier ( pictured), conceivably his most creative player was dropped to the bench in place of Liam Martin.

You would be pressed hard to find a harder working player in this league that Martin and I understand Dave would have wanted to utilise his work rate against such a dangerous counter- attacking outfit. But leaving your biggest offensive asset on the bench against a team that gives you so little opportunity in front of goal is always going to needlessly limit a team’s chances.

Stephen Kenny has assembled such a strong squad following the loss of Daryl Horgan, Andy Boyle and Ronan Finn.

European money will help fill that void of course but even without regular starters Gary Rogers, Stephen O’Donnell, Dave McMillan and Dane Massey they looked unperturbed on Saturday.

There was a call and a need for some sort of reaction from the Bit O’Red after the Limerick game but there was none.

Rovers were again undisciplined at the back. Easily stretched and cajoled out of position by an attack that would do damage in even stronger leagues, we made it too easy for the opposition.

Our midfield barely got a look in. Martin and John Russell worked hard but without much to show for it while Craig Roddan and Daniel Kearns were anonymous once again.

Kearns looked sharp in pre- season but his performance levels over the first 180 minutes of the season have been disappointing. Although this won’t be helped by the narrow, one track style insisted on by management.

Raffaele Cretaro was a marked man up top. Every inch he covered was tracked by a stifling Brian Gartland. While Jonah Ayunga looked lively on his first start but never got anywhere near close enough to land a punch before his dismissal on 66. Watching Rovers on Saturday reminded me of Longford Town towards the end of last season. We look already jaded, like a team several points adrift with nothing to play for. Largely spiritless, waiting for the season to end almost accepting their fate. It didn’t look like an eleven sent out to right the wrongs of a disastrous first day. It certainly didn’t feel like just the second game of the season! Again, a blatant lack of leaders stood out particularly at the back. As it was in Limerick, another early goal set Rovers on the trailing foot from the start. Once a team so lacking in experience goes behind to a juggernaut like Dundalk even without their full quota of players, there was no return. Robertson is reportedly close to the signing of Belgian defender Bryan Van Den Bogaert who trialled with Derry earlier this year. With a background of mostly lower league English and Belgian clubs and if signed, the 25- yearold will be expected to adapt and settle virtually instantly to the more physical, uncomfortable landscape of the League of Ireland. Realistically, Dave needs to follow this up with the experienced goal scorer he failed to land in pre- season if he still harbours ambitions of challenging the top four. Defeat on Friday against St Pat’s would pile ever growing pressure on the club’s management committee to make a big decision. 2,138 came through the Showgrounds gate at the weekend, with around 350/ 400 of those from Dundalk leaving a home support of approximately 1,700. Not as a high a figure the club would have hoped for for a first home game of the year. Defeats, coupled with the poor standard we’ve seen so far in 2017 equals more vacant seats on match night as the weeks progress and less cash at the turnstile. Gate money is not the number one form of revenue for any football club but it is critical in terms of cash flow as a season develops. Another display anywhere as poor as the first two this Friday night, will leave Sligo Rovers at another critical juncture.