St Patrick’s Athletic stunned runaway leaders Shelbourne with a rousing second half display, to crush their city rivals 4-1 in tonight’s top of the table clash at The Stadium of Light. The eircom Premier Division leaders got off to a dream start when Dessie Baker latched onto an optimistic long ball down the right wing which Pat’s left back Stephen McGuinness failed to control with three minutes on the clock. The Dubliner capitalised on McGuinness’ mistake and the young striker made no mistake with a calm finish from 15 yards past Steve Williams in the Shelbourne goal.
The Shelbourne midfield were well on top throughout the early exchanges, with Paul Doolin instrumental in all their attacking play. However, they failed to take advantage of their territorial advantage as the home side dug deep to take a 1-0 deficit in at the interval, and how they were made to pay after the break. Pat’s were given an ideal start to the second half when Avery John handled under pressure in the box, and Liam Kelly made no mistake from the spot to level the scores.
Darren Maguire put Pat Dolan’s men 2-1 up when he made Pat Scully’s absence show as he rose almost unchallenged to meet a corner from Martin Russell in seven minutes later. Robbie Griffin then confirmed Pat’s’ change in fortunes with another header, meeting a Martin Russell free-kick from the left on 62 minutes to leave Williams helpless as the Shelbourne defence crumbled. Man of the Match Kelly added his second and Pat’s’ fourth six minutes later when he latched on to a clever flick from Michael Holt on the left, and the striker drilled home from an acute angle.
The three points move the Supersaints into second, seven points behind the leaders, but third placed Bohemians will be satisfied with the night’s result, which sees them eight points behind with two games in hand. After the game, an elated Pat Dolan was visibly delighted with his side’s second half performance, and speaking to RTÉ Sport, he said: “ It was a very decent first half, but I wasn’t happy that we gave them an early lead. But credit to the players, they’ve worn the shirt with pride and got a great result for us in the end. It was a dream night tonight, and against Shels, who’ve been the best team for the past two seasons. We’re delighted with the win.”
Elsewhere in the Premier Division, Bray Wanderers beat Galway United 2-1 at The Carlisle Grounds with goals from Phil Keogh and a Colm Tresson penalty. In the First Division, one time leaders Athlone Town suffered another setback with a 2-1 defeat at home to Home Farm. Meanwhile, there were 1-1 draws between Limerick and Waterford, and Monaghan and Drogheda.
Filed by Shane Murray
