Kilduff is Hoops’ hero

Shamrock Rovers 1 Dundalk 0

Both sides knocked the ball around confidently from the kick-off, with Dundalk somehow surviving falling behind on seven minutes.

Keeper Peter Cherrie saved a header from Tommy Stewart from Gary McCabe’s cross with his feet while Shane Robinson rapped a follow-up shot off the butt of a post.

Dundalk responded well to take the game to Rovers and Keith Ward was close to capitalising on a slip by Hoops’ 17-year-old debutant left-back Alan Kehoe. But his chip from some 40 yards hadn’t enough flight to trouble Richard Brush.

Rovers had a let-off eight minutes into the second half when Brush saved with his feet from Kurtis Byrne after a one-two with strike partner Vinny Faherty opened up the home side.

But a blunder at the other gifted Rovers the game’s only goal three minutes later. Striker Kilduff pounced on a mistake by Dane Massey and shot high into Cherrie’s net from 20 yards.

Cherrie prevented a second on 76 minutes with a diving save to push substitute Sean O’Connor’s powerful angled drive round a post.

Dundalk chased the game hard late on, with Richie Towell and John Dillon firing wide before Brush made the stop of the night from Ward’s low drive in stoppage time as Rovers held out to join holders Drogheda United, Sligo Rovers, Derry City, St. Patrick’s Athletic, Cork City, Bohemians and Limerick in the last eight.

SHAMROCK ROVERS: Brush; McCormack, Oman, Elebert, Kehoe (McGuinness, 70); Chambers; Rice, Robinson (Finn 90); McCabe (O‘Connor 55), Kilduff, Stewart.

DUNDALK: Cherrie; Towell, Sullivan, Massey, Osborne; Mountney, Ward, McDonnell (Boyle 65); Byrne (Dillon 78), Faherty, Meenan (Mulvenna 74).

Referee: Paul Tuite (Dublin).