Sligo Rovers 1 Derry City 2
Derry City defender Ronan Boyce was the hero at the Showgrounds on Saturday, as his late winner secured a fourth straight Premier Division win.
Boyce followed up on Jamie Malone’s half-cleared cross to smash the ball into the top corner and condemn third-placed Sligo Rovers to their seventh successive defeat.
It was a late sucker punch for the home side in an entertaining tie, as the Candystripes moved to fourth in the table, just one point off their hosts.
They had taken the lead after a bright start with an 11th minute thunderbolt from Joe Thomson.
The midfielder gave Sligo keeper Ed McGinty no chance with a drive from the edge of the box after Evan McLaughlin rolled a free into his path.
But the hosts finished the first half strongly, with youngster Johnny Kenny in lively form up front.
He firstly saw a header tipped over the bar by Derry keeper Nathan Gartside, and then missed the target from a good position inside the area after a neat pass from Jordan Gibson.
He forced another save off Gartside when he raced onto a slip from Boyce, but finally got his goal on 42 minutes, as he turned home Mark Byrne’s cross.
Sligo: McGinty, Banks, Buckley, Mahon, Horgan, Morahan (Cawley 76), McDonnell, Gibson, Byrne (Parkes 80), Figueira, Kenny.
Derry: Gartside, Boyce, Toal, Coll, Malone (Cole 88), Lafferty, Thomson, McLaughlin (Hery 61), Harkin, McGonigle (Fitzgerald 72), Ogedi-Uzokwe.
Referee: N Doyle.
