A GOAL IN each half saw Shamrock Rovers suffer defeat in their opening Nagjee International Tournament game as Ukrainian side Dnipro prevailed in the Indian heat.
Both teams needed water breaks to deal with the humidity in Calicut, and unfortunately for Rovers, Dnipro adjusted quicker to the conditions.
Simon Madden denied Vladislav Kochergin in the early stages, but the Ukraine U19 international continued to threaten, and opened the scoring with a deflected effort after half an hour.
Shamrock Rovers had a number of chances to level from corners, but the SSE Airtricity League side could not convert their set pieces, leaving Dnipro ahead at the break.
Pat Fenlon’s men tired as the game wore on, and a team move from the Ukrainians saw them fall further behind with Vitaliy Kireyev doubling the lead from close range.
The Hoops continue their group stage with a match against 1860 Munich on Wednesday.
