Tommy Lonergan helped Waterford to a share of the spoils against Shelbourne as the sides played out a 1-1 draw in their SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division opener on a heavy RSC pitch.
The striker headed home Conan Noonan’s 54th-minute free-kick to earn the hosts a deserved point.
With Waterford fielding seven new players, they played second best to Shelbourne in the opening half, but a triple change from Blues’ boss Jon Daly gave his side a different shape.
Indeed they could have won it late on through a Padraig Amond header that flashed just wide of the target after another Noonan set-piece.
It was the visitors who took up the early running, forcing a couple of early corners before having the first chance on 12 minutes. Milan Mbeng sent over a right-wing cross that was glanced on by John Martin to the back post, but Dan Kelly sliced an angled effort over the bar.
Shelbourne did hit the front just 60 seconds later.
Kerr McInroy cracked in a shot that wasn’t cleared by Conor Carty, and after Mipo Odubeko had his ambitious overhead kick blocked, former Blue Martin slotted home the close-range rebound past a helpless Stephen McMullan.
McMullan was called into action to make a smart save to deny Joey O’Brien’s side a second goal after 35 minutes. Harry Wood skipped past the lunging challenge of Carty out on the right before feeding McInroy, but his left-footed strike was saved by the Blues keeper.
Odubeko brought another fine save out of McMullan two minutes into the second half when he peeled off his marker to meet a Kelly cross, the net-minder diving to his left to keep out his powerful header.
Wood went close to doubling the lead on 49 minutes, only to fire into the side-netting, before Odubeko once again got free inside the area a minute later to get on the end of Kameron Ledwidge’s left-wing cross, but his header was straight into the arms of McMullan.
Blues' boss Daly made a triple change on 53 minutes, and within two minutes his side were level as Noonan whipped in a free-kick that found the head of Lonergan, and although Wessel Speel got a hand to the ball, he couldn’t stop it from finding the net.
Will Jarvis went close to putting Shelbourne back in front after 71 minutes, but his curling strike went inches wide of McMullan’s post.
A free-kick off the training ground five minutes later nearly sent the RSC into ruptures as Noonan's brilliant delivery from the right picked out the teasing run of Amond at the near post, but his header flashed inches wide of the target.
McInroy picked out the run of Ledwidge out on the left on 83 minutes before continuing his run to meet the returning cross, but he could only fire straight at McMullan before Noonan had a chance at the other end when he got behind the Shels’ defence, only to drag a left-footed shot wide of the target.
Lonergan could have won it for Waterford in second-half added time when he raced at the Shelbourne defence before cracking in a shot that Speel collected before Sam Glenfield and Sean Boyd both picked up yellow cards after the former's late challenge.
Waterford: Stephen McMullan; Luke Heeney, Hayden Cann, John Mahon, Benny Couto; Conan Noonan, Evan McLaughlin (Trae Coyle 53), Cian Barrett (Sam Glenfield 53), Conor Carty (Jorgen Voilas 53); Tommy Lonergan, Padraig Amond.
Shelbourne: Wessel Speel; Milan Mbeng (Sean Gannon 80), Paddy Barrett, Odhran Casey, Kameron Ledwidge; Dan Kelly (Will Jarvis 66), Kerr McInroy, Jack Henry-Francis; Harry Wood (Maill Lundgren 80), Mipo Odubeko, John Martin (Rodrigo Freitas 66).
Referee: Lucas Keating (Cork).
