Shamrock Rovers ‘operating in a different league’

SLIGO Rovers boss John Russell says champions Shamrock Rovers are ‘operating in a different league’ after the Hoops were comfortable 3-0 winners over the Bit O’Red at Tallaght Stadium on Friday night.

It a second consecutive defeat for Russell’s side, who have conceded six goals in their last two games.

Sligo Rovers travelled to Tallaght Stadium full of hope on Friday night, but the hosts were in control from the off, with the visitors really struggling to keep up with their Dublin counterparts.

There is, of course, the issue of squad size. Russell has gone with a smaller squad this season in the hope of keeping everyone fit, but injuries to John Mahon and Nando Pijnaker, along with Simon Power’s suspension means that the squad is tight.

When Shamrock Rovers are able to bring on players of the calibre of Trevor Clarke, Richie Towell and Johnny Kenny, Russell has a very young bench.

“They’re operating in a different league, we all know that,” Russell said afterwards.

“Our budget was cut from last season. We have a tight squad, we knew that coming in.

“Then John Mahon gets injured in pre-season, he was a starter for us, Nando gets injured and he’s out for a period of time, obviously Simon being suspended.

“When we have our best 11 on the pitch I think we’re a match for anyone. We had everyone available against Shamrock Rovers at the start and we drew, I felt we probably should have won the game.

“We are where we are, that’s the situation we find ourselves in. We’ve a tight squad, tight budget, and it’s up to other players to step in. Players had a chance tonight, it was tough but they’ve got to analyse it as individuals and us as staff.”

The Bit O’Red were under pressure from the off, with Stephen Bradley’s side able to take a stranglehold of this encounter from the very start.

Russell’s side worked hard, but in truth, it was very much one way traffic for 90 minutes.

A sensational effort from Graham Burke put the Hoops ahead, with Aaron Greene making it 2-0 five minutes into the second half. Greene’s second made it 3-0. Russell added: “Shamrock Rovers were a level above us, we came up with a game plan to be solid, be compact, and first half I thought we did OK.

“Graham Burke’s goal was a worldie from outside the box, it’s gone in the top corner, I don’t think there’s anything Ed could have done with it.

“I felt we were OK in the first half without being brilliant on the ball when we won it back on the re-set. Second-half, the key thing was to be solid in the first 15/20 minutes, we knew away from home, they’re a good team, they’re playing well.

“And then the second goal kills you, you can’t concede in the first five minutes, you’re 2-0 down away from home, the game plan goes out the window.

“You try and put a bit more pressure on, we started getting on the ball and then one big ball goes over the top and 3-0. It’s game over. Tough night.”

It was a bad night at the office, and the game plan didn’t come to fruition. And as tough as things were at 1-0 down, the second goal was the real killer, particularly when it was so early in the second half.

“We were poor on the ball, we were looking at us being solid and trying to eliminate the amount of chances that Shamrock Rovers were going to have and then try and hit them on the counter.

“First-half our shape was good, we did limit them to a few chances, we had one or two on the break, Fabrice nearly slipped in Ellis, one or two half chances. But that second goal kills us.

“When you’re defending in a mid to low block and you go 2-0 down, and then you start chasing. The game opens up. It’s a tough one. We have to lick our wounds.

“The big one for us now is we have a double home game coming up Friday, Monday. All focus will be on that now.

“We need to be cleaner on the ball, especially when we win it back, we get caught, it’s unlike us.”

Russell made four changes with 15 minutes to go, bringing on Wilson Waweru, Rein Smit, Kailin Barlow and Owen Elding.

And he said he hoped his side would be solid for the first hour, allowing him to open up the game for the final 30 minutes.

“The game was done, we were 3-0 down, we needed to get a bit more pressure on Shamrock Rovers, get a bit of fresh energy and legs into the team.

“It was always the plan tonight to be solid for the first 60 minutes and then open up for the last half an hour but unfortunately we went 2-0 down and then 3-0 down and the game went away from us. We’ll move on.”

For anyone who may have been getting carried away, the past two

games may serve as a reminder of where Sligo Rovers are at.

They have started the season well, but Russell has a young squad, a tight squad, operating on a very tight budget.

“I think we’re real in terms of in the building. We’ve got good players but it’s tight. You can see that once we lose one or two of our key players, we’re on the backfoot.

“When you have your best players it’s hard to get results in this league. It was great when people were getting excited, we were up to second at one stage, but it’s so tight in the league.

“If we win our two games at home all of a sudden we jump back up and people are going ‘Sligo for Europe’, we just need to go game by game. For us, we’ve shown good stuff in the first round of games.

“We need to get Simon back in the squad on the Monday against Galway. Charlie and Ollie have to grow into it over the next couple of games and form that partnership, and just keep working hard in training and we’ll move into the next game.”

Russell isn’t worried, there have been more than enough positive signs so far and after two consecutive defeats, he won’t be panicking, particularly as those two defeats have come against sides expecting to challenge for the title.

“We analyse every game. It’s about us, Shamrock Rovers are in a different league to us.

“They’re going for the title, five in a row, people were saying we were going to be in tenth this season, and St Pats, people were saying they’re going for the league title, we’ve lost to the two of them, both away from home.

“We’ve shown at home that we can match anyone. Our away form, to be fair, has been good this season, we’ve gone to Dundalk and won, gone to Waterford and won, gone to Bohs and probably should have won, so I’m not worried.

“The lads are all working hard. We’re just really tight on bodies, and you see tonight when you lose one or two, it’s always tough when you lose one or two.”

Russell has two home games to look forward to next week, with Dundalk coming to The Showgrounds on Friday followed by the visit of Galway United in that rescheduled game.

“I’m really looking forward to getting back to The Showgrounds, we’ve had three games away from home and I think the players will be hurting tonight.

“It’s never nice. It’s important to reflect, come in on Monday morning, have a good week’s training and bounce into Friday.”