EUROPA LEAGUE SECOND QUALIFYING ROUND, FIRST LEG Spartak Trnava 3 Sligo Rovers 1:GAVIN PEERS ensured Sligo Rovers' Europa League campaign is far from over after scoring a vital away goal in last night's first-leg clash with Spartak Trnava in Trnava, Slovakia.
Three goals inside eight minutes looked to have sent Ian Baraclough’s side tumbling out of the second qualifying round, but a second-half header from Peers gives them hope.
If they can turn the tie around at The Showgrounds next week, there is financial reward of a UEFA cheque worth €100,000 as well as the possibility of facing the likes of Liverpool or Inter Milan.
In spite of the scoreline, this was a game that Sligo can take a lot of positives from as they played the better football for large spells against a Spartak side that clearly ran out of steam.
Although, the three first-half goals, one scored by Miroslav Karhan and a brace from Martin Mikovic, means the Bit O’Red have a huge task of trying to turn this tie around.
“We have self belief that we can win any game. We have only lost one game in the league this season, we feel as though we have a good squad and that the tie is very much alive,” said Sligo manager Ian Baraclough.
“We think we can claw a two-goal lead back. I think that away goal was very, very important. I felt we were the better team for long periods, apart from a mad five minutes.
“We managed to galavanise ourselves at half-time and went and took the game to Trnava. I felt we got our reward with an away goal and maybe could have had more. But the tie is still very much alive.”
Spartak expected to win comfortably and they showed their intent early on inside the Antona Malatinskeho Stadium as Michal Habanek shot from distance.
Yet, Sligo were not going to be intimated despite the hostile atmosphere and Raffaele Cretaro went close with two efforts.
The first was a deflected cross that evaded the hosts’ entire defence, while his second chance was a shot that flashed wide after linking up well with team-mate David Cawley.
Spartak roared back as Patrik Gross forced Sligo keeper Gary Rogers into a fine save before Karhan opened the scoring when he headed in a corner kick from Vlastimil Stozicky.
Still dazed from that goal, Sligo conceded again as a cross from the left found the unmarked Mikovic and he curled a shot past Rogers from the edge of the penalty area.
Less than a minute later, the diminutive winger got his second of the night when he raced onto a stray pass, lured Rogers from his goal-line and squeezed his shot in from an acute angle.
Now trailing 3-0, Sligo had it all to do in the second half. But they showed a real fighting spirit as Cretaro rattled the upright with a stinging shot and Joseph Ndo had a free-kick saved.
Cretaro again went close with a header before the visitors got their reward. A cross from Danny North picked out Peers, who got in ahead of keeper Miroslav Filipko to head home.
The pocket of Sligo supporters could finally be heard as the home crowd fell silent. And they were on the verge of booing their team as Baraclough’s men pressed for a second goal.
Ndo’s free-kick was whipped across for Peers to head over, while substitute Pascal Millien did brilliantly to cross for North, whose header sailed wide when he should have hit the target.
Baraclough’s confidence afterwards was justified as his team were the better side here, but they have it all to do in the second leg in order to turn the tie in their favour.
SPARTAK TRNAVA: M Filipko; M Habanek, M Janecka, P Cvirik, V Stozicky; P Gross, M Karhan; M Gasparik, M Mikovic (I Schranz, 70 mins), M Bicak (J Koubsky, 84 mins); L Tomacek (K Pavelka, 60 mins).
SLIGO ROVERS: G Rogers; S Conneely, G Peers, J McGuinness, R Gaynor (J Henderson, 90 mins); D Ventre, D Cawley; R Cretaro (P Millien, 77 mins), J Ndo, R Boco; D North.
Referee: T Skjerven(Norway).
