Photo: Donagh McMorrow
Shane McNamee’s first-half strike gave Letterkenny Rovers hope, but a double from Diala Princewill helped Salthill Devon secure a deserved 3–1 victory at Leckview Park.
Rovers recovered from conceding twice inside the opening 18 minutes to reduce the deficit before the break. A promising start to the second half raised hopes of an equaliser, only for Princewill’s second goal in the 56th minute to restore the visitors’ two-goal advantage.
The FAI National League Group 2 encounter was played in front of an attendance of 130.
Rovers began positively, with Joel Gorman and Zach Gorman sending dangerous deliveries into the visitors’ six-yard box during the opening exchanges. Nnabuike Nneji made an important clearance as the home side sought an early breakthrough.
Salthill soon threatened themselves. Ronan Kerin fired wide from distance before a move down the right ended with Richard-Miguel Lapointe-Guevara forcing an excellent diving save from Patrick McGarvey. From the resulting corner, however, Ben McDonnell found the net to put the visitors ahead after nine minutes.
A second goal followed in the 18th minute, again from a corner. McGarvey produced another fine stop to deny Kerin’s header, but Princewill reacted quickest to the loose ball and finished from close range.
McGarvey then prevented further damage, closing down McDonnell and blocking his effort when the Salthill player broke through one-on-one.
Rovers responded with Joel Gorman’s firmly struck free-kick forcing the visiting goalkeeper to tip over the bar in the 25th minute.
Salthill remained dangerous, with McDonnell curling narrowly wide following a short-corner exchange with Lapointe-Guevara. McGarvey also gathered a low McDonnell free-kick securely.
At the other end, Luke Parke delivered twice from the right towards Ryan Shields. The first opportunity evaded the Rovers attacker, while he found room to head the second but could not direct it on target.
Rovers began to enjoy more patient possession as the half progressed. McNamee shot over following an exchange with Adrian Delap before making the breakthrough four minutes before the interval. When Salthill failed to clear, the ball bounced invitingly in front of him just inside the penalty area, and he drove a powerful finish into the net.
That left Rovers trailing 2–1 at half-time, with the contest very much alive.
Rovers carried that momentum into the second half. McNamee controlled well before shooting just wide of the left post in the 48th minute, while another purposeful run and delivery from Parke created an opportunity for Adam McCaffrey, whose effort from outside the box also went narrowly wide.
Against the run of play, Salthill restored their two-goal lead in the 56th minute. A Rovers clearance fell to Princewill centrally, around 30 yards from goal, and his low strike found the bottom-left corner.
Rovers continued to search for a route back, but deliveries from McNamee and Joel Gorman brought no reward. Gorman’s free-kick from the left curled beyond the far post with ten minutes remaining.
McGarvey stayed alert to block Lapointe-Guevara after Darren Darcy threaded a pass through the centre. Late Rovers pressure involving Keith Cowan, McNamee and Delap also failed to produce a breakthrough.
Salthill created further chances in the closing stages, with Darcy chipping wide from a tight angle and Jacob Carroll firing over after being picked out by Kerin.
Rovers will reflect on opportunities to draw level early in the second half, but Salthill’s finishing proved decisive as the visitors claimed the points.
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