Dundalk first team coach John Gill was elated but honest in his post-match assessment after his side beat Shamrock Rovers 1-0 at the Tallaght Stadium. “It wasn’t one of our better nights. We didn’t play particularly well. We’ve dug in as we’ve done
Dundalk first team coach John Gill was elated but honest in his post-match assessment after his side beat Shamrock Rovers 1-0 at the Tallaght Stadium.
“It wasn’t one of our better nights. We didn’t play particularly well. We’ve dug in as we’ve done all season. We rode our luck in the first half.”
Gill was delighted to welcome back some of his key men, he said: “It’s well documented that we’ve had a lot of problems in the midfield area. Sean Murray hadn’t played in about eight weeks. It was great to get Robbie Benson on the pitch tonight. We picked up another little injury this week with Jordan Flores – we kept that quiet.”
After being dominated territorially by Rovers in the opening 45 minutes, Gill was very happy with the response of his side after the break: “We’re a very resilient group. Second half we played a lot better. We had more chances than they had. We’ll take the bit of luck that we got.”
Gill sees huge significance in the result in the context of the league table. “There’s great belief in that dressing room. You can see at the end how much it meant. There’s no trophies handed out here tonight but there’s no doubt that was a big win. To come here at any time but to come here when you’re five points clear and make it eight!” was Gill’s hugely satisfied summary.
The Dundalk supremo also found some words for the vanquished but unlucky home side. “They’re a good side. They (Rovers) won’t go away. They’ll still be there or thereabouts. We’re just thrilled to come here and get the win.”
As usual in the SSE Airtricity League, attention quickly switches to the next assignment. “We’ve got a good squad. We will definitely rotate on Monday. We’ll focus on Waterford tonight We’ll be in tomorrow, train Sunday and try to keep this run going.”
