WATTS the story Rovers Glory.
Dylan Watts scored an injury time header to salvage an opening night Conference League point that felt like a win.
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The Shamrock Rovers substitute climbed highest in the area to head home fellow sub Jack Byrne’s corner two minutes into injury time to earn a 1-1 draw with APOEL Nicosia.
And it felt as good as a win in the circumstances, as the Hoops played most of the second half with ten-men after Neil Farrugia was sent off.
When Konstantinos Laifis headed APOEL into the lead on 59 minutes after a long period of Cypriot pressure, it looked like it could be a long night for the Hoops.
But they held firm, held their nerve and fought back to earn a deserved point that sets them up nicely for the rest of the campaign.
Next up for the Hoops are two derbies against Celtic cousins; Larne in Belfast on October 24 and then TNS of Wales in Tallaght on November 7.
Win both of those and the Hoops could be very close to securing a knockout stage game in February even with three games against Rapid Vienna, Banja Luka and Chelsea to come.
And that is why most of the 7,111 in Tallaght last night greeted the draw like a win from a game against a very good APOEL side.
The Cypriots boasted eight full internationals but also fielded an old team, with eight players over 30 including 37-year-old former Morocco striker Youssef El-Arabi.
The Hoops, by contrast, had a youthful look with their front six all being 25 or under.
If the plan was to tire out APOEL, Farrugia’s red card on 50 minutes changed that as those fresher legs were needed to make up for the one-man disadvantage.
It was a deserved red too as his second yellow for a tug on Marquinhos was a silly decision, though his first yellow for a scuffle with Xavi Quintilla in the 43rd minute was harsh.
That just added to a long list of decisions from French referee Jeremie Pignard that baffled the crowd as he veered between dishing out yellows and waving play on.
Johnny Kenny was annoyed by it on 25 minutes when he shot wide despite having his shirt pulled more than once as he raced through by Radosav Petrovic.
The referee saw enough to lecture Petrovic about his indiscretion but not enough to award a free kick – a regular feature as he let a lot go in the game.
When the referee bodychecked Poom moments later that meant David Abagna was given time to shoot from distance, Rovers’ fans let their feelings about the whistler be known.
But there could be no complaints about Farrugia’s red card for a silly cynical move when already on a yellow card.
Early on, the bigger issue for Stephen Bradley’s side just could not get their foot on the ball as they kept giving it away cheaply in midfield.
Leon Pohls had to punch away a powerful drive from a tight angle from Quintilla in the opening two minutes and the back three were having to deal with a lot of crosses.
But few of them caused much trouble, though Brazilian Marquinhos was central to all of the Cypriots’ big moments.
Fortunately for Pohls, the ball dropped behind Marquinhos who adjusted to attempt a lob but had his angles all wrong and could only volley the ball way wide.
Yet as the half went on, Rovers did get stronger and began to boss more of the game without ever troubling Slovenian goalkeeper Vid Belec in the APOEL goal.
Belec was tested early in the second half when Rovers were able to attack quickly after winning the ball in midfield as Kenny shot straight at the goalkeeper.
But Farrugia’s red soon after that changed the complexion of the game as APOEL seized their opportunity and began to create some big chances.
Pohls then made a stunning one-handed save to keep out a powerful Laifis header after the Hoops were caught napping at a short corner on 58 minutes.
But from the resulting corner, the Hoops defence was breached as Laifis got his goal.
It was a straight forward move as Quintilla whipped in a cross from the right and Laifis climbed above Roberto Lopes to head powerfully home.
Hoops’ goalkeeper Pohls protested that Laifis had fouled Lopes, though there were no other complaints nor was the referee asked to check with VAR.
And it could have got worse for Rovers moments later had Lopes not blocked an El Arabi shot while Gary O’Neill was also forced off through injury.
But the Hoops held their nerve and were soon back in control of the game as, despite the numerical disadvantage, they pressed for an equaliser.
Kenny had a great chance on 75 minutes when put through on goal by Josh Honohan’s ball but he took an extra touch that took him wide before firing straight at Belec.
Boss Bradley then sent on Byrne, Watts and Aaron Greene to fresh up his attack though Rovers were vulnerable on the counter attack.
Quite how Marquinhos managed to shoot off target when one-on-one with Pohls after he robbed Cleary of possession five minutes from time is a mystery.
And their wastefulness was then punished when Watts rose high to head home.
And it meant Rovers did a lap of honour with more than their heads held high, they did so with a point and confidence that they can make an impact inthe coming weeks.
Shamrock Rovers 1 (Watts 90)
APOEL 1 (Laifis 59)
Sun Star Man – Lee Grace (Shamrock Rovers)
Shamrock Rovers: Pohls 7; Cleary 7, Lopes 7, Grace 8; Farrugia 4, O’Neill 6 (Towell 65, 6), Poom 7 (C O’Sullivan 53, 6), Honohan 7; Mandroiu 6 (Watts 77, 6), Nugent 5 (Byrne 77, 6); Kenny 6 (Greene 77, 6).
APOEL: Belec 6; Susic 6 (Cheabake 72, 6), Petrovic 6, Laifis 7 (Dvali 88, 6), Quintilla 7; Kostadinov 7, Abagna 7 (Kattirtzis 61, 6); Ndongala 7 (Corbu 88, 6), Tejera 7, Marquinhos 7; El-Arabi 7 (Bah 72, 6).
Referee: J Pignard (France) 4
