Sligo battle back to clinch dramatic win
Saturday 23rd September 2006, 10:34 pm
Chris Turner (left) scored a dramatic winner for Sligo.
Photo by Tom Carey.
23rd September 2006
eircom League of Ireland Premier Division
Sligo Rovers 3
Matthew Judge 46
Darren Mansaram 87
Chris Turner 88 pen
St. Patrick's Athletic 2
Colm Foley 20
David Mulcahy 40
The Showgrounds
Saint Patrick's Athletic let another lead slip away from them tonight but tonight's was far more demoralising than last week's loss to Shelbourne. Sligo Rovers fought back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 but to make it all the more remarkable, the Saints led with just three minutes left on the clock at the Showgrounds.
Adam Hughes went close in the opening minutes for Sligo but Colm Foley headed the Saints in front after twenty minutes as he connected with Keith Fahey's free kick. Dave Muclahy made it 2-0 twenty minutes later as he drilled home a low drive.
Sligo got in an instant response straight after half-time. After Matthew Judge's initial shot had been saved by Barry Ryan, Fahrudin Kudozovic set him up again and this time Judge made no mistake with the follow-up header.
Despite cutting the gap to one goal, Sligo struggled to get another and Paul Keegan could have put the game beyond them but his attempted lob flicked off the top of the Sligo crossbar with fifteen minutes remaining.
As the Saints seemed set to win Sligo levelled on 87 minutes. Darren Mansaram scored a stunning goal to level. Less than a minute later the same player won a penalty and Chris Turner slotted home to leave the Saints stunned and beaten.
The win edges Sligo closer to confirming a top five finish in their first season back in the Premier Division.
Sligo Rovers : O'Hara, MacKenzie, McNamara, Burns, Turner, Hughes, Kudozovic, O'Grady, Singh, Mansaram (Bellew 90), Judge.
St. Patrick's Athletic : Ryan, Brennan, Mulcahy, C Foley, Frost, Rutherford (Cornwall 90), Fahey, Maguire, Molloy, Keegan, Rooney (Armstrong 89).