Advertisement League of Ireland Horse Racing TV Listings GAA Fixtures The Video Review Sport meets news, current affairs, society & pop culture Rugby Weekly Extra Dive into all the news and analysis 3 times a week The Football Family Weekly insights from the week’s big talking points Advertisement More Stories Shamrock Rovers’ Aaron Greene congratulates goalscorer Graham Burke.Morgan Treacy/INPHO Freemisfortune Loss to Shamrock Rovers completes a miserable day for Drogheda It was confirmed earlier that the 2024 FAI Cup winners had been expelled from the Uefa Conference League. 10.15pm, 16 Jun 2025 Share options Drogheda United 1 Shamrock Rovers 2 Barry Landy reports from Sullivan and Lambe Park ON A day when Drogheda United suffered two devastating blows in quick succession, there was a sense of deja vu even about how they lost to Shamrock Rovers. Just as was the case the last time Stephen Bradley brought his team to Sullivan and Lambe Park back in March, Graham Burke and Aaron Greene scored the goals to turn a one-goal deficit into a 2-1 victory. They can bounce back from this defeat, starting on Friday when they face Sligo Rovers at this venue — but their hopes of a European adventure are officially dead in the water. The Court of Arbitration of Sport announced earlier on Monday evening that Drogheda’s appeal against Uefa’s decision to expel them from the Uefa Conference League had been dismissed. Advertisement The Drogs, after the jubilation of their FAI Cup final win and general upward trajectory since then, were brought back down to earth with a bang. Confidence in their case has proved unfounded. They certainly began this game looking like a side with a point to prove — namely that they can mix it with sides of European calibre, as Rovers have proven themselves to be. George Cooper’s early goal was fully warranted as United started the better side. The majority of the 2,444 crowd were making quite a noise too. Their appeal might have fallen on deaf ears, but they were making themselves heard nonetheless. There was a strange kind of atmosphere — one of disappointment but also defiance. The on-loan Mansfield Town defender rose highest in the penalty and planted a header into the net after Shane Farrell’s corner from the left. It arrived after three minutes and 30 seconds, just one second shy of being Drogs’ quickest goal of the campaign. That accolade still belongs to Warren Davis. United’s seven-goal top goalscorer began the game on the bench against the team with whom he started his career as a boy. Rovers were deserving of their equaliser, though. It arrived via a Graham Burke free-kick after Andy Quinn was pulled up for a hard-to-spot handball just outside the area. Burke’s effort was well struck, but Luke Dennison might have done better. Earlier, to his credit, the goalkeeper had done well to deny Trevor Clarke’s drive from close range. The Hoops asked plenty of questions of the Drogheda defence. Those were mostly answered until the 73rd minute when Greene found the winner. He finished smartly for his sixth goal of the season when played in by substitute Danny Mandroiu. The linesman’s flag offered no respite, with Kieran Cruise playing the striker onside. Only Warren Davis’ header late on was close to restoring parity. Drogheda assistant Daire Doyle and goalkeeping coach Aaron Shanahan were red-carded in injury time as tempers flared on the sideline. Drogheda United: Luke Dennison; George Cooper (Aaron Harper-Bailey, 71), Conor Keeley, Andrew Quinn; Kieran Cruise, Luke Heeney, Shane Farrell, Conor Kane; Darragh Markey (Ryan Brennan, 56); Douglas James-Taylor (Warren Davis, 66), Thomas Oluwa. Shamrock Rovers: Ed McGinty; Lee Grace, Roberto Lopes, Joshua Honohan; Cory O’Sullivan (Jack Byrne, 66), Matthew Healy, Darragh Nugent (Danny Mandroiu, 46), Dylan Watts (Michael Noonan, 67), Trevor Clarke; Graham Burke (Daniel Cleary, 79), Aaron Greene. Referee: Neil Doyle Barry Landy Viewcomments Send Tip or Correction Embed this post To embed this post, copy the code below on your site Email “Loss to Shamrock Rovers completes a miserable day for Drogheda”. Recipient's Email Feedback on “Loss to Shamrock Rovers completes a miserable day for Drogheda”. Your Feedback Your Email (optional) Report a Comment Please select the reason for reporting this comment. Please give full details of the problem with the comment... This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy before taking part. Leave a Comment Submit a report Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines. 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