Gerard Lyttle’s Sligo side held on to claim a point against Limerick despite going down to ten men late on.
Rafaelle Cretaro saw red but the Bit O’Red hung on despite the numerical disadvantage.
Sligo remained unchanged from their one-all draw with Drogheda United last week, while Limerick boss Neil McDonald didn’t shy away from shaking up his team selection.
Dropping a near ever-present in Robbie Williams while shifting Chiedozie Ogbene out wide to accommodate Garbhan Coughlan up front were brave moves from the Blues manger.
Sligo were understandably content to sit in shape and break against Limerick when the opportunity arose in the early stages. That sequence was the story of the opening half. Now sitting in a rigid 4-4-2 shape, the hosts lacked that free-flowing attacking edge that home crowds have become so accustomed to.
Occasionally poor in possession, Lyttle’s men would pounce on the Shannonsiders’ lack of control in the middle of the park and this led to the majority of their half chances.
Cretaro cleverly picked up central positions to claim second ball and his through ball towards Daniel Kearns early on was misjudged by makeshift right back Dean Clarke. Clarke would eventually make up the ground - forcing Kearns to shoot into the side netting.
Limerick crafted little in truth. Ogbene’s pace that scared central defenders over the last few weeks was now absent in central areas - leaving the combination of Leahy and Sharkey comfortable at the heart of Sligo’s defence.
.@Schling1Slaz was outstanding in the Rovers goal. Flawless display. Rovers gave all and came away with a point. pic.twitter.com/MKBm33fIt1
— Sligo Rovers (@sligorovers) July 22, 2017
Neil McDonald waited ten minutes into the second half to make changes. The introduction of John O’Flynn and Stephen Kenny brought the game to life, but Sligo created the only real chance of the game.
Cretaro picked up the ball inside the Limerick box and shot across goal. Brendan Clarke could only palm away the effort, and Benny Igiehon netted at the back post. The linesman raised his flag however - much to the disappointment of the visiting fans behind the goal.
Cretaro then saw red late on for a poor challenge on Ogbene, but his side hung on - claiming a point but remaining in the bottom three.
Limerick: Brendan Clarke; Dean Clarke, Tony Whitehead, Joe Crowe, David O'Connor; Henry Cameron (Bastien Hery, 77), Lee-J Lynch, Shane Duggan, Chiedozie Ogbene; Rodrigo Tosi (Stephen Kenny, 55), Garbhan Coughlan (John O’Flynn, 55).
Sligo Rovers: Micheal Schlingermann; Tobi Adebayo-Rowling, Seamus Sharkey, Michael Leahy, Regan Donelon; Gary Boylan, Rhys McCabe, John Russell (Jonah Ayunga, 77); Daniel Kearns (Craig Roddan, 90), Benny Igiehon (Mikey Place, 90), Raffaele Cretaro.
Referee: Paul McLaughlin (Monaghan)
