Shamrock Rovers 2
Limerick 1
Dave Donnelly reports from Tallaght Stadium
SHAMROCK ROVERS SECURED a third-place finish in the Premier Division as they overcame Limerick at Tallaght thanks to second-half strikes from Brandon Miele and Ronan Finn.
The visitors had the better of the tepid opening exchanges with Chiedozie Ogbene and Henry Cameron linking up well behind sole striker Peter Berki.
The winger countered from a Bastien Hery intercept after 15 minutes and looked to have laid on the game’s first goal for Berki, only for Hoops keeper Kevin Horgan to pluck the ball off his toe.
Winger William Fitzgerald, on his full debut, had a great chance when a loose ball broke to him in the box but he shot straight at Horgan, as did Ogbene when sent clear by Cameron’s through-ball.
Freddy Hall had to be at his best to deny McAllister on the stroke of half-time as he clawed the midfielder’s goalbound effort away from the top corner.
There was little he could do about Miele’s next effort, seven minutes after the break, when the Tallaght man smashed home from the spot after Dean Carpenter had been fouled.
Hall was at fault for the second, however, beaten at his near post by Ronan Finn, after the captain did brilliantly to break into the box and fend off multiple challenges.
Substitute Colm Walsh-O’Loughlin pulled one back for the Blues nine minutes from time, thumping the ball expertly into the top corner from just inside the box.
SHAMROCK ROVERS: Horgan; Madden, Carpenter, Bone, Byrne; McAllister (Doona 67), Finn, Bolger; Miele, King (Connolly 59); Boyd (Dillon 75).
LIMERICK: Hall (Holland 80); Clarke, Whitehead, O’Connor, Murphy; Duggan, Hery, Fitzgerald, Cameron (O’Sullivan 61), Ogbene; Berki (Walsh-O’Loughlin 72).
Referee: John McLoughlin.
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