Sligo Rovers 0 - St Patrick's Athletic 1St Patrick's Athletic followed the lead of their fellow title hopefuls Shamrock Rovers and Bohemians as they too eked out a result against one of the bottom sides to return to the top of the Premier Division table on goal difference. Aidan Keena struck for Pat's with 15 minutes to go against his old club as Sligo Rovers were beaten for the fifth game running, meaning their relegation could be confirmed at Tolka Park in a few weeks' time when they face Shels and former boss John Russell. For Pat's, it was a case of doing just enough, given that they were nowhere near their best. Keena's winners means Stephen Kenny's side climb back to the top with one game extra played than Bohs and the Hoops. On the brink of ending their two decade association with the top flight, Sligo's chances of a great escape under Darren Purse have faded quickly. Yet to win a league game under the former West Brom centre-half and without a Premier Division win in fourteen outings, Purse stuck with the same team which were overturned by Galway on Monday. Academy graduates Aidan Gabbidon and Rueben Gillespie kept their spots, while goalkeeper Liam Hughes started his second game on the spin in place of regular stopper Sam Sargeant who missed out with a shoulder knock. Chasing that first league title in 13 years and looking to go back to the league's summit on goal difference after Shamrock Rovers' win over Waterford in Tallaght, Saints boss Kenny made just the one change from their demolition of Dundalk. Ryan Edmondson, with ten goals to his name this term, was selected in place of recent acquisition Anthony Olusanya. In a meeting of the league's leakiest rearguard against one of the division's most prolific goal-scoring outfits, it was unsurprisingly the Dubliners who looked the more threatening. Sligo did have a couple of breaks on the counter, Archie Meekison fired straight at Joe Anang for what was the host's only chance of the half. Pat's created opportunities through Edmondson, while Hughes' reactions allowed the former Liverpool youth to deny Sean Hoare's close range header after Luke Turner had flicked Anto Breslin's long throw into the path of the incoming Hoare. Edmondson again went close before Hughes pulled off the acrobatics to get a flying hand to Ryan Sheridan's drive from distance. Once more, it was Hughes who was Pat's nemesis when he got behind a Keena rocket moments before the interval. Many would have expected the Inchicore men to easily overturn a Sligo side on a four-game losing streak, however the Saints continued to be frustrated by their own lack of a killer touch as much as Rovers' defensive doggedness. Keena blazed over a set-piece from the edge of the area after Hughes easily collected a half-hearted go at goal from Jamie Lennon. Zach Elbouzedi ballooned one over from the angle with 20 left, while the title chasers were almost hit with a sucker-punch on 73, seconds before they took the lead. Sligo substitute Luke Pearse cut a pass inside for Jack Shorrock whose first time shot was fisted onto the Pat's crossbar by Anang. But the visitors instantly cut the tension when Hughes was unable to keep a grip on sub Olusanya's initial shot, allowing Keena to pounce for his twelfth of the year. © rte.ie
