SETANTA CUP Quarter-final, second leg/Shamrock Rovers 4 Lisburn Distillery 2:A LATE DOUBLE from Paddy Kavanagh provided the sheen to more than ease Shamrock Rovers through to today's semi-final draw in Belfast.
Ronan Finn and Stephen Rice combined to set up Kavanagh who turned well inside the area to rifle to the net on 81 minutes. Winger Kavanagh then raced clear onto Finn’s pass to score a fine solo goal on 88 minutes
It scarcely mattered as goals late and early in each half from Ciaran Kilduff and Rice had already all but won the tie.
Having done the hard work of running up an impressive 3-0 first leg lead at the New Grosvenor Stadium last week, Rovers might have been ahead on the night inside the opening minutes only to then gift Lisburn a lifeline with the concession of a dreadfully soft goal.
Carelessness by Rovers’ central defender Pat Flynn on 14 minutes allowed Phil Simpson’s long ball to bounce, compounding that error by then missing his kick, to allow Gary Liggett through to shoot past Ryan Thompson.
Rovers should have been level on the half hour when skipper Dan Murray squared the ball for Karl Sheppard whose shot was cleared off the line by Paul Muir.
But a well-deserved equaliser finally arrived on 42 minutes. Midfielder Stephen O’Donnell threaded a ball through for the perfectly timed run of Kilduff who rounded Billy Brennan to slide the ball home.
The tie was effectively sealed within two minutes of the restart when Sheppard’s low diagonal ball in from the right flank was met by Rice whose low drive from 16 yards went in off the near post.
Lisburn striker Liggett headed home from under the bar form Gary Browne’s cross on 56 minutes to level the scores on the night before Kavanagh’s late flurry.
SHAMROCK ROVERS: Thompson; Doyle, Flynn, Murray (Sullivan, 63 mins), McCormack; Sheppard, Rice, O’Donnell, Kavanagh; Kelly (Finn, 73 mins), Kilduff.
LISBURN DISTILLERY: Brennan; Devlin, Simpson, Muir, McShane (Traynor, 61 mins); Forsythe, Davidson, Kilmartin, Cushley (Patton, 66 mins); Browne (Hughes, 79 mins), Liggett.
Referee: Neil Doyle (Dublin).
Shamrock Rovers win 7-2 on aggregate
