Sporting Fingal 1-0 Sligo Rovers
Sporting Fingal suffered only their second defeat of the season at the hands of Sligo Rovers as they missed out on a place in the semi-final of the EA Sports Cup.
Rafael Cretaro’s diving header two minutes before half-time gave Sligo the edge in this quarter-final tie in which Fingal dominated for long spells.
A penalty miss in the 15th minute by Ross Gaynor was the nearest the home side came to enhancing their prospects of advancing.
Steve Feeney gifted Gaynor the great chance to open the scoring when he handled Alan Kirby’s volley inside the. A penalty was awarded but the striker’s spot-kick failed to beat Richard Brush, who turned the effort wide of the post.
Sligo silenced the home support just before the break when Stephen Parkhouse’s cross was headed home by Rafael Cretaro to put Sligo 1-0 up against the run of play.
Brian Cash delivered a cross from the right which the Fingal defence to clear, allowing Parkhouse clip the ball into the path of his strike partner to nod home from six yards.
Within a minute, Quigley prevented Parkhouse from doubling Rovers’ lead when by saving spectacularly from the Sligo striker’s header.
Rovers came close to doubling their lead once more as Parkhouse put Sean Holmes through on goal after 57 minutes with a beautiful flick only for the winger to shoot wide of Quigley’s goal.
Shane McFaul then force Brush to save well down to his right with a long-range shot. Gaynor had two chances to get shots on target but failed on both occasions.
Fingal continued to push for an equaliser as Gaynor and John Frost both came close to levelling the game late on.
Their late push Fingal almost yielded extra-time as three minutes from the end Conan Byrne got a header on target only the Sligo stopper to tip the effort over.
Sporting Fingal (4-3-3): Quigley; James (McConnell-Cooke 88), Gannon, Whelan, Frost; Kirby, McFaul, Williams; C. Byrne (Bayly 88), Gaynor, McArdle (Fitzgerald 83).
Sligo Rovers (4-4-2): Brush; Keane, Peers, Feeney, Ventre; Cash (Morrison 82), Boco, Ryan, Holmes; Cretaro (O’Grady h/t), Parkhouse.
Ref: N. Doyle.
Attendance: 387.