Enda Stevens and Darragh Lenihan got on the score sheet today as the majority of Championship clubs concluded their seasonal campaigns.
Stevens was on the mark for Sheffield United as they brought their season to end with a 2-2 draw against Stoke City, before heading up to the Premier League this autumn. Lenihan, meanwhile, scored the opener for Blackburn Rovers in a 2-2 draw with Swansea City at Ewood Park.
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Conor Hourihane and Alan Judge also played significant roles for Aston Villa and Ipswich Town respectively. Hourihane set up Jonathan Kodjia with an exquisitely-taken free-kick in Aston Villa's 2-1 loss to Norwich City, while Judge did likewise for Ipswich Town's Flynn Downes.
👏 Enda Stevens puts the Blades back level at the Bet365 Stadium.#SUFC 🔴 pic.twitter.com/RwiFCPkoSZ
— Sheffield United (@SheffieldUnited) May 5, 2019
Unfortunately for the Portman Road outfit, they still finish bottom of the league and will take their place in League One next season.
Meanwhile, PFA Championship Goalkeeper of the Year Darren Randolph just missed out on a place in the promotion play-offs despite beating Rotterham United 2-1, with Richard Keogh's Derby County taking up the last spot after a 3-1 win against West Brom.
There were also a number of promising Irish performances in the Premier League this weekend. In the Friday night kick-off Seamus Coleman scored in the first-half to secure a 2-0 win over Burnley, while Matt Doherty provided a trademark assist for Leander Dendoncker in Wolves' 1-0 win over relegated Fulham.
⭐️ Man of the Match, @marktravers40 of @afcbournemouth
5️⃣ saves, 2 inside box, 3 outside box.
Aged 1️⃣9️⃣ years, 3️⃣5️⃣1️⃣ days, he is the 5️⃣th different teenage 'keeper to keep a clean sheet on his PL debut pic.twitter.com/XePwktMfxL— Sky Sports Statto (@SkySportsStatto) May 4, 2019
But the most promising performance of the weekend from an Irish perspective was, without doubt, 19-year-old Bournemouth goalkeeper Mark Travers. The Irish youngster won man-of-the-match on his Premier League debut while keeping a clean sheet against Tottenham.
Needless to say, Randolph could do with keeping an eye over his shoulder ahead of some pivotal international clashes just around the corner.
