'Glad we have our team back' - Damien Duff hails ten-man Shelbourne after matching Shamrock Rovers

Damien Duff was delighted with his side's performance in their top of the table clash with Shamrock Rovers, which ended scoreless at Tolka Park.

Shelbourne finished the game with ten men following substitute Shane Farrell’s red card with 20 minutes remaining, however, his side matched the league champions throughout and could have taken all three points.

In a game without too many goalscoring chances, Shelbourne had their fair share, with player of the match Paddy Barrett coming close to scoring in the first half of a very tight affair against Stephen Bradley’s Hoops.

Rovers did start the brighter and almost took the lead in the opening minutes when Roberto Lopes crashed his header off the woodwork, but otherwise, goalkeeper Conor Kearns was rarely troubled by the esteemed visitors.

And the Reds boss believes that he, once again, saw the best of his side, as they bounced back from some poor recent form.

"I thought it was a fascinating game," said Duff, speaking to RTÉ Sport after the match. "We looked safe and secure all night, and we had the better chances.

"I loved our energy, our edge that we played with. We haven’t seen it for three weeks, but I’m glad that we have our team back, and long may it continue.

"It’s been a bad few weeks, results wise. People feeling sorry for themselves in and around the club, in the dressing room."

The manager has not been happy with recent performances and had no issue letting his players know that more is expected, as he implores his side to maintain the form that saw them take top spot in the Premier Division.

However, he also added that criticism has to be taken with a certain amount of context, considering the famous Dublin club are still looking to recreate the glory days of two decades ago