COMMENT: Dundalk's Jordan Flores goal can only help put spotlight on League of Ireland

Now, if you have been sleeping under a rock since Friday night, then let me take you through ‘THE WORLDIE’.

Trailing to a Dylan Watts’ 20th minute goal, Vinny Perth’s men went straight down the other end from the restart and won a corner. At this stage Rovers had Tallaght Stadium, which was packed to the rafters, bouncing and knew they needed to defend Michael Duffy’s corner well but no one really expected what was going to happen next.

The Oriel Park men are always a threat from set-pieces but it’s normally from the likes of Dane Massey (Derry City found that out on the opening night of the season), Andy Boyle, Pat Hoban, Sean Hoare and Co, who do the damage. No-one, including Stephen Bradley’s men, thought Flores would be the man they should be marking tightly until the ex-Wigan Athletic man turned ‘Marco Van Basten’ and the rest is history.

As virtually every player inside the Rovers penalty box ran to the front post, Duffy’s equally impressive corner was drilled to the back post where Flores somehow volleyed home - (by lifting his left ‘peg’ to a height that would see most people wreck their hip) - despite Alan Mannus’ best attempts.

The technique in the strike meant that the goal rightfully went viral and was the talk of every League of Ireland ground up and down the country.

In fact not just of League of Ireland grounds but in football stadia throughout the world.

It has had over 4 millions views on-line and with such technical excellence on display, it could yet take home this year’s Fifa Puskas award.

Indeed if former Germany and Liverpool midfielder, Dietmar Hamann, was on the Puskas award panel, then Flores would already have his trophy as the ex-Bayern Munich man described the goal on Twitter as - “Goal of the century, best I’ve ever seen.” Some accolade considering Hamann has played with, and against, quite a few top quality players and knows a thing or two about goals having scored a few thunderbolts in his own playing days.

And the German international wasn’t the only man who thought it was a wonder goal. Another former Liverpool and England striker, Peter Crouch, stated on social media that Flores’ strike was ‘Goal of the Season’ while it also got recognition on Match of the Day 2’s ‘Two Good, Two Bad’ section on Sunday night.

Listen I put it up there as one of the best goals I have ever seen and if you are a League of Ireland fan, then it’s brilliant because this goal has meant the league being shown throughout the world from Australia to USA.

To make things even better, the match itself at Tallaght was a proper humdinger of game. I can say the contest was a humdinger because I recorded and watched quite a bit of when I came home from the Brandywell and it was great to see the top two sides really going at it.

For Flores, while everyone on the planet is talking about his goal, he and his Dundalk team-mates will be annoyed they lost a crucial fixture but for the rest of the league, the FAI and RTE will be delighted by the coverage and the publicity.

The titanic battle between the league’s ‘big two’ was a great advert for the game and should hopefully ensure that more football fans will start to come out in bigger numbers and start supporting the local game.

In fact, there was another five goal thriller at Inver Park in the Irish Cup where Oran Kearney’s Coleraine came from behind to see off a free flowing Larne side.

It’s nights like Friday that show football fans up and down the country, north and south, that packed out stadiums with live TV coverage, means the product in both the Danske Bank

Premiership and League of Ireland is there so maybe some day both leagues will join forces and the All Island League will happen.

While rightfully everyone was talking about Flores goal, at the Brandywell, youngster Stephen Mallon scored what in most cases would have been a goal of the month contender, as he opened his account for the Candy Stripes.

The Ireland U21 man showed superb, silky skills to cut inside and out and leave Michael Barker for dead, before unleashing a stunning left footed strike high into the net.

The finish put the icing on top of the cake of a great individual display. Indeed his skill to skip away from Barker and Co. reminded quite a few Derry fans of a certain Mr Paddy McCourt doing something similar not so long ago.

Mallon’s goal capped a terrific ‘man of the match’ display and Derry fans will rightfully get excited the next time the Belfast man gets on the ball high up the pitch.

During pre-season and in the two substitute appearances he made against Dundalk and Finn Harps, Derry fans got glimpses of the 19-year-old, but against Bohemians they started to see what he’s really all about, an old fashioned winger who loves to get the ball and run at the full back, jinking inside and out.

Boss Declan Devine Devine was also full of praise for winger’s attitude.

“Stephen is a very talented boy and the reason we brought him here was that natural ability to go past people,” stated Devine.

“I’m delighted for him because he has had to wait his time. He has come on as a sub in two successive games, but the way he has trained over the last week or two has been magnificent and I’m delighted he has got his rewards tonight, because he’s a real good lad.”