Price takes positives from draw on return of Rovers' First Division team

Macdara Ferris reports from Tallaght Stadium

Shamrock Rovers II have conceded costly goals in three of their four First Division games to date so far this season. 

They conceded at 86th minute equaliser against Galway United, and a 93rd minute winner to Cabinteely just prior to lockdown.

At Tallaght Stadium on Sunday as their season re-started they had a two goal first half lead against ten man Drogheda United but could only come away with a point after Brandon Bermingham’s goal eight minutes from time earned a point for the Drogs.

The Head Coach Aidan Price was taking the positives from a very good performance by his young side even if they couldn’t quite come away with the victory.

“There are an awful lot of positives to come from that game,” said Price when speaking to extratime.com after the match. 

“It is a massive learning curve for our players to understand what this league is all about. Understanding that you can be punished when playing against the quality of players that Drogheda had today.”

Price was able to bring quality into his own team, with the Hoops bringing Liam Scales into the starting line up. Rovers’ second team are allowed to play a goalkeeper and one overage player from Stephen Bradley’s Premier Division squad.

21-year-old Scales is too old to qualify for Rovers’ First Division squad – qualification is for those born in 1999 and later – and he became the first outfield verage player to play for the Hoops second team this season. 

It was Scales who handed the Hoops the lead within 40 seconds of the game kicking off. He got his head to a Brandon Kavanagh corner to score and Sean Callan did similar mid-way through the first half off another Kavanagh corner.



“You can do set pieces all day long, every day of the week but it is the aggression from the boys to go and get on the end of them. That is the most important part. Credit to the boys for going and attacking that the way they did. I don’t think anyone could have stopped them.” 

The Hoops should have wrapped up all three points in the second half. Thomas Oluwa hit the post and Dean Williams hit the crossbar.

Stephen Bradley, speaking to extratime.com after Saturday’s 3-1 win in the Premier Division over Finn Harps, explained how Williams was unlucky not to start that match – he made an appearance off the bench with 14 mins to go in the victory against Harps in the Premier Division.

"He was unfortunate not to start,” said Bradley. “He has been brilliant. It was a really tight decision whether to play him or not. Dean is a player who we rate really highly and he will score goals for us this season and in the future."

As part of the league re-start following the COVID-19 break, up to five substitutions are allowed which will give more opportunity for players from the Rovers academy to get game time when the time is right according to their manager. 

Price brought on highly rated 15-year-old Kevin Zeffi who has been linked with moves to Inter Milan and PSV Eindhoven.



“It isn’t just a token gesture," siad Price. "The players are good enough. You aren’t just bringing them on to say ‘we’ve brought a 15-year-old on’. That is not what it is about. The boys are ready and deserving of that opportunity. Physically, they are able for it.

“We need to manage when and where we can play them. I don’t think we expect for them to play week in week out at this stage. If we have opportunities to give them every now and again that will help their development which is what we want to do.”

    About Macdara Ferris

    Macdara Ferris is a contributor since 2007 to Hoops Scene (Shamrock Rovers' match day programme) and is the co-author of two books on Shamrock Rovers - 'Tallaght Time: Shamrock Rovers 2009 to 2012' (with Karl … View Full Profile