John Russell 'disappointed' to leave Derry with just a point

If you told Sligo Rovers manager John Russell prior to kick-off that his side would leave the Brandywell with a point after finishing their Premier Division game against Derry City with 10 men, you'd fancy he'd have regarded that as at least a satisfactory outcome. However, Russell insisted that the encounter was one his side could and should have won.

Connor Malley's spectacular 34th-minute opener for the Bit O'Red was cancelled out when his team-mate Reece Hutchinson misdirected a clearance into his own net eight minutes after the restart in the 1-1 draw.

Two bookings for Luke Pearce inside 15 minutes left Sligo with 10 men with more than 15 minutes to play, but the visitors remained bold in their attacking approach and Russell felt a point was ultimately an underwhelming return for their efforts.

"Disappointed to be coming down the road with a point," he told RTÉ Sport in his post-match interview. "I thought we played really well tonight in and out of possession, took the game to Derry, an outstanding goal from Connor Malley and I thought we controlled the game for large parts.

"Second half, disappointed to go down to 10 men, I thought Luke Pearce had to go for the ball. It was there to be won.

"But even with 10 men I thought we were so dangerous on the transition.

"We'd really good opportunities to get that second goal and win the game and I couldn't be prouder of the players and the performance they put in tonight.

"Nobody gave us a chance coming up here tonight. It was all about Derry and they have to get the points to win the league. We're just disappointed that we didn't close the gap."

Russell reserved special praise for goalscorer Malley and Arsenal loanee Jack Henry-Francis, who scooped the man-of-the-match award,