26 Brian Maher
Hadn’t a save to make all game. His only brief moments of concern came from the occasional bouncing ball but he was fine otherwise. Got a harder time from the flares thrown by Shelbourne fans than from their players. Rating: 7
2 Ronan Boyce
Patrolled the right side of the Derry defence throughout and made sure Duffy had nothing to worry about behind him. Shels only got in behind him once, early in the second half. But he didn’t give a sniff beyond that. Rating: 7
Marcus Rashford ‘ready for new challenge’ as Manchester United exit moves closer
Liverpool’s Arne Slot says Premier League referees are testing his patience
Champions Shelbourne to host Derry City in Premier Division 2025 season opener
Wolves set to appoint Vitor Pereira as new boss after agreeing 18-month deal
16 Shane McEleney
Kept tabs on Moylan and never let him into the game. Didn’t have to get into a wrestling match like Connolly, just studiously closed down the space and sickened the Shels playmaker. Rating: 7
6 Martin Connolly
Commanding performance. Played the calming parent at the heart of the Derry defence. Constantly organising and cajoling, as well as launching himself into a succession of aerial duels with Boyd. Rating: 8
7 Michael Duffy
Once Duff shored up the left side of the Shels defence, Duffy went to work on the other wing. Got in behind Wilson to set up the second goal, linking beautifully with McJannett and driving into the box. Almost scored a goal from the gods but the crossbar had other ideas. Rating: 7
23 Cameron Dunnigan
Did all the donkey work around the middle that allowed McEleney the time and space to do the destroying. Passed and moved, kept the ball circulating and barely once gave it away. Rating: 6
14 Will Patching
Started brightly but had a quiet game after the initial flurry. Walloped one free kick into the wall but was solid rather than spectacular for most of the game. Rating: 6
19 Ryan Graydon
Did all the damage in the early stages, terrorising Farrell down the Derry right and setting McGonigle up for the opener. Caused Shelbourne to completely reorganise to neutralise him. By the time they did, the game was over. Rating: 7
17 Cameron McJannet
Can’t ask for much more than that. Reacted quickest for the first goal, when beating Lunney to the loose ball. Didn’t react at all for the second one, which was just as well seeing as it hit him and went in. Rating: 9
10 Patrick McEleney
Steered the game to his wishes throughout the first half, dropping deep behind the centre-circle and spraying passes right and left. Killer pass for the opening goal and always played the clever ball from there on. Rating: 8
9 Jamie McGonigle
Had Shelbourne on the run from the game’s very first attack, streaking through to get a toe poke that Clarke had to rush out to save. Drifted off Byrne for the first goal, sniffing the chance after Graydon cut inside and flicking a lovely finish. Rating: 8
Substitutes
There was really nothing for them to do. James Akintunde came on for McGonigle with 15 minutes to go – the game was long since trousered at that stage but he kept chasing around anyway. Ciaran Coll and Joe Thompson saw out the closing 10 minutes. Rating: 6
Manager: Ruaidhrí Higgins
This is why he left Stephen Kenny’s Ireland set-up. His team smothered Shelbourne from the opening minute, always finding space and time on the ball. He was nimble too, changing the emphasis from right to left after Duff changed the Shelbourne shape. A serious triumph. Rating: 8
Shelbourne
1 Brendan Clarke
Rushed out to pull off a fine smother on McGonigle in the opening minute and saved a McEleney free-kick soon after. But he could only do so much. No chance with the first two goals, probably got caught a bit under the corner for the third. Rating: 5
23 Luke Byrne
Struggled to keep tabs on McGonigle’s movement at the heart of the Shels defence. Left him in too much space for the first goal and could only watch as the finish found the net. Capped a miserable day by giving away the injury-time penalty. Rating: 4
5 Shane Griffin
On a rough afternoon for the Shels back three, he was probably the pick of them. Aggressive on the left side, albeit it earned him an early yellow card. Never stopped throwing himself in the way of danger. Rating: 6
28 Stephen Negru
Another who endured a torrid day, unable to work out how to shut down the space in front of him. Played traffic cone as Duffy jinked inside and clattered the bar very soon after the third goal went in. Rating: 5
17 Shane Farrell
Derry sharpened their knives for him at wing-back. Got caught under McEleney’s ball for the first Derry goal, leaving Graydon in the clear. Switched to midfield after 25 minutes but the game passed him by, replaced at half-time. Rating: 4
2 John Ross Wilson
Duffy bided his time to get into the action but gradually came to torture him. Shelbourne never had enough possession to encourage him onto the front foot either so it was a pretty miserable afternoon all round. Rating: 5
21 Gavin Molloy
Started in midfield but brought a bit of stability when switched to left wing-back. Gave Graydon something to think about going the other direction too, pushing on and stretching the Derry defence. The damage was done though. Rating: 5
16 Aodh Dervin
A bright spark in the Shelbourne midfield, always looking for the ball and brimming with ambition. Some terrific blocks in his own box as well. Harshly substituted, to his visible disgust. Rating: 6
6 JJ Lunney
Sprayed one fantastic early ball in behind the Derry defence soon after the break that hinted at what might have been. Chased a lot of shadows and grew noticeably frustrated with himself as the game wore on. Rating: 5
10 Jack Moylan
Never got himself into matters in any meaningful sense. One chance dropped invitingly to him 10 minutes into the second half but he thrashed at it and hit fresh air. Rating: 4
9 Sean Boyd
The fight went out of him long before the end. Never able to make the ball stick at centre-forward and lost out in the air to Connolly time and again. Reduced to roaring at his midfield with 20 minutes still left on the clock. Rating: 4
Substitutes
Brian McManus came on for Farrell at half-time and threw himself around with a bit of spite and conviction, albeit to no great result. Kameron Ledwidge and Mark Coyle came on after the third goal but it was a lost cause by then. Rating: 5
Manager: Damien Duff
Overall, his team was outclassed but you’d still have to say that his shape didn’t work against Derry’s. His players got more and more narky with each other as the game progressed, constantly finding themselves overloaded. Made a good in-game change to get Farrell out of left back but his lack of options showed. Rating: 5
