League of Ireland Premier Division: St Patrick’s Athletic 0 Shelbourne 1 (Coote 10)
Ali Coote’s early goal ended St Patrick’s Athletic year-long unbeaten home record in the league to reignite Shelbourne’s tenuous title retention hopes as they beat the Inchicore side for the second time this season.
The result, only the champions’ third win in 12 games, moves Damien Duff’s side level on points with fourth-placed St Patrick’s, though still 12 points behind leaders Shamrock Rovers who came from behind to beat Drogheda United 2-1.
St Pats’ worrying form thus continues as they’ve now failed to win any of their last three games at Richmond Park and have one victory in five.
With five changes from Friday’s home defeat to Shamrock Rovers, Shelbourne enjoyed plenty of early possession and were deservedly ahead from a sweeping attack on 10 minutes.
Skipper Mark Coyle, Harry Wood and Evan Caffrey were involved before Tyreke Wilson put the latter’s cross back into the home area.
With St Patrick’s at sixes and sevens, Coote’s shot took a deflection off Tom Grivosti to wrong-foot goalkeeper Joseph Anang and find the net for his third goal of the season.
Shelbourne maintained their positive start as St Patrick’s laboured to get a foothold in the game.
It was the 23rd minute before Saints threatened for the first time to give their restless fans some cheer.
A surge forward from right-back by Ryan McLaughlin set it up with Aidan Keena helping Simon Power’s cross on to Jay McClelland. Sam Bone showed good defensive instinct to get his body in the way to deflect the shot out for the game’s first corner.
With St Patrick’s finally in the game, Conor Kearns was worked for the first time when having to react acrobatically to turn an inswinging ball from Jake Mulraney round a post before Kian Leavy forced a third corner in quick succession with a deflected shot from distance.
But there was a let-off for St Patrick’s on 34 minutes when Shelbourne striker Sean Boyd, starting for the first time in two months, sliced tamely wide dead in front of goal after incisive approach play by Evan Caffrey who had worked a one-two with Wood on the right.
Clearly unhappy with his team’s first half showing, Stephen Kenny made three changes from the resumption with Axel Sjoberg, Barry Baggley and Mason Melia replacing McLaughlin, Anto Breslin and Mulraney.
It duly injected more energy and purpose to the home side as they chased the game.
Shelbourne had three corners to defend in the opening minutes of the half while Kearns was then forced into a diving save from a Keena drive.
The visitors’ rearguard remained steadfast, however, as St Patrick’s upped the tempo. Substitute Zach Elbouzedi had a close range effort bravely blocked while Jamie Lennon shaved the crossbar from 20 yards.
In the key moment of the second half five minutes from time, Kearns made the save of the game to deny Baggley following Elbouzedi’s surging run from deep as St Patrick’s 17-game unbeaten home run in the league came to an end.
Aaron Greene scored a 74th-minute winner as Shamrock Rovers beat Drogheda at United Park to make it seven wins in eight games to stretch their lead at the top of the table to nine points.
It closed a bad day for Drogheda who, earlier in the afternoon, had it confirmed that they had lost their appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on being denied participation in this season’s Conference League qualifiers due to being in breach of UEFA’s multi-club ownership rules, also losing out on a minimum of €525,000 in prize money.
Drogheda started well with George Cooper putting them ahead after just four minutes before Rovers levelled three minutes before half-time from Graham Burke’s seventh goal of the season.
St Patrick’s Athletic: Anang; McLaughlin (Sjoberg, h-t), Redmond, Grivosti, Breslin (Baggley, h-t); Lennon, McClelland; Power, Leavy (Elbouzedi, 71), Mulraney (Melia, h-t); Keena (Carty, 85).
Shelbourne: Kearns; Bone, Barrett, Ledwidge; Caffrey (Gannon, 74), Lunney (Kelly, 70), Coyle, Wood, Wilson (Norris, 74); Coote (Chapman, 60); Boyd (Martin, 70).
Referee: Paul Norton (Dublin).
Attendance: 4,421.
