‘The league called it off, it’s out of our control’

SLIGO Rovers manager John Russell says his side were desperate to play Saturday’s postponed game against Galway United, in order to make up for losing to St Patrick’s Athletic the previous Monday.

Frustrated Galway fans, some of whom were already in Sligo by the time the game was postponed, have attempted to suggest that the Bit O’Red had a say in the postponement of the game due to the injuries Rovers have been faced with.

But, the decision was out of their hands, and Russell says his players were keen to play the game.

“It’s the way the world is, people go nuts and the reaction to stuff on social media, thankfully I don’t engage in any of that, I try and stay in the real world! We all want to play matches, it’s a Saturday night, it’s a home game, big gate for the club.

“We’ve had brilliant support and backing, we don’t want games to be getting called off because we know the repercussions, game is moved to a Monday and now we’re playing Friday-Monday at home which might have an effect on the gate.

“We want to play matches, we got beaten on the Monday by St Pats, we wanted to put that right on the Saturday night. The weather was atrocious. Could it have been played?

“The league called it off, it’s out of our control. We move on. The players wanted to play the game and we wanted to play the game.

“We were disappointed, you want to keep momentum going, after losing the game to St Pats you want to jump back into a home game.

“It was going to be the first Connacht derby in a number of years, it got called off. We’ve had a good week’s training leading into Shamrock Rovers.”

Defender Reece Hutchinson added: “It was (disappointing), and the players were buzzing to get going again. We were expecting a full crowd, local derby.

“On a personal point, I know I didn’t play my best football (against Pats) and my family were over at the time so to have the game called off was a bit heart-breaking, we wanted to put that right.”

Defender Nando Pijnaker is likely to miss a lengthy period having broken ribs in the collision with his team-mate Ed McGinty, and after spending some time in hospital, the New Zealand defender made an appearance at training on Thursday morning.

It now means that Russell is without two centre-backs, as John Mahon continues to recover from an achilles injury that has kept him out since pre-season.

Russell said: “We knew coming into the season that we would have a tight squad. Losing John in pre-season was a big blow, and you don’t mind certain times, injuries happen.

“But it was a freak accident, at the time I was worried that two players were going to be in big trouble.

“Thankfully Ed came out of it OK, unfortunately for Nando, it was a bad injury. He’s going to be out for a period of time, for him personally I think he’s been playing really well, he’s been brilliant, I think he’s had a really good start to the season.

“He’s a player that’s been at the club for three seasons and I think he will play at a higher level, it was going to be a big season for him. These things happen. As a club and medical staff, everyone has to rally around him and do everything we can to get back on the pitch.

“It was good to see him come into training, we are down bodies but it’s up to other players to step up.

“There’s other players in the academy like Conor Reynolds and Kyle McDonagh, these guys are defenders, they will get opportunities when a door opens.

“Conor’s done really well in pre-season, like Daire Patton and Kyle McDonagh, been in since last summer. Conor came on against St Pats, I have high hopes for Conor, he can play a number of positions.

“But also for Ollie and Charlie, it’s a good opportunity for them to build up a partnership in defence.

“Nando’s got to take time to recover and see how the body reacts. He was in this morning, it was great to see him. He’s had a tough few days.

“He was up in Dublin and had to spend a few nights there but thankfully he’s back in Sligo and we have to be patient, he’ll be back to see the doctor as well in a couple of weeks and we’ll have a clearer picture after that.

“There was a lot of speculation around Ed after the collision with Nando, he would have been available for the Galway game and JR is back as well. They’re fully fit.”

It is still early in the season. But there have been some positive signs for Russell’s side, who he feels aren’t getting the recognition they deserve.

But, in order to do so, Russell believes his side need to keep up their good run of form.

“I think we’ve started the season well, bar the St Pats game I think we’ve played well. We’ve picked up good points, probably should have a few more points on the board. We have to concentrate on ourselves, it’s still early. We’ve only played eight games, we have to continue on this journey of winning matches, being more competitive and solid, it’s a long season.

“The national media probably don’t give Sligo Rovers enough recognition, that’s not a new thing. For us to change that perception we have to win matches, we have to stay in the pack, we can’t slip down.

“Every week it’s such a challenge, you see Galway beating Derry away, Waterford beating Bohs, you don’t know week to week what’s going to happen. When we played Shamrock Rovers I felt we should have beaten them.”

And Russell feels his players have bought into the club, understanding what the Bit O’Red means to the community and to the fans.

“There is optimism around the group, we’ve recruited well in the off-season, we’ve got players that are leaving everything on the pitch, they understand what it means to play for Sligo Rovers, and they’ve shown that so far.

“You still have to produce that week-in, week-out.

“Our fans, I’ve said all along, they’ve got right behind the team, they’re representing them and we’re one of those clubs, one of the last community funded, community run.

“You see the money raised in the run up to the Galway game, €20,000 was raised in a couple of days, it’s incredible.

“That’s what us, as players and staff, are representing and we’ll continue to do that.”