Sligo Rovers 0 Derry City 2
Goals in each half from Rory Patterson and Ronan Hale secured a fifth win in a row for Derry City at the Showgrounds on Saturday night.
Patterson netted an early free, and Irish under-21 international Hale fired home in the second period as struggling Sligo Rovers lost at home for the fifth time in six games.
Derry were without the injured Darren Cole, so former Rovers favourite Gavin Peers was handed his first appearance for the visitors at centre back.
And it was Derry that took the initiative from the start, and after a dominant opening 15 minutes, Irish under-21 international Ronan Curtis really should have scored when he broke into the area with only the keeper to beat.
Rovers netminder Micheál Schlingermann made a fine stop, but Derry managed to break the deadlock almost straight after.
Rhys McCabe tripped Aaron McEneff at the edge of the box as he broke onto the rebound, and Patterson stepped up to drive the free-kick low to the bottom corner via a deflection.
Rovers made a triple change just before the hour-mark, as Séamus Sharkey, Raffaele Cretaro and Eduardo Pinceli were all introduced. And Brazilian Pinceli almost picked out Greg Moorhouse with a good flick into the area, but the striker couldn't connect.
And Rovers were left to rue that missed opportunity just a minute later, as Curtis, Patterson and Rory Hale were all involved in setting up Ronan Hale to fire low under Schlingermann from the edge of the box.
SLIGO: Schlingermann, Boylan, Callan-McFadden (Sharkey, 59 mins), Waters, McAleer, McCabe, Cawley, Roy (Pinceli, 59 mins), Morgan (Cretaro, 59 mins), Moorhouse.
DERRY: Doherty, McDermott, Toal, Peers, Doyle, Low, Rory Hale, McEneff, Ronan Hale (McDonagh, 75 mins), Curtis (Hopkirk, 81 mins), Patterson (Cofie, 88 mins).
Referee: P McLaughlin.
