Roy of the Rovers (comic) Argentine international of the same name. The 1980s saw a slew of popular strips run in the comic, including The Apprentices (1983–84), a short-lived strip detailing the exploits of Melchester's apprentice professionals (effectively acting as the Melchester Rovers story in the comic as Roy was managing Walford for much of its run)—and Harker's War (1985), a strip that took an unconventional angle by showing a former policeman's one-man war on football hooliganism. The mid-1980s also saw reprints of Nipper, a popular strip originally appearing in "Score 'n' Roar" and "Scorcher and Score", that featured Nipper Lawrence, a plucky working class
Sligo Rovers F.C. finishing nine points behind winners Shamrock Rovers making it another good season for the club. The following season once again saw the club go agonisingly close to winning a trophy on two occasions. First was a 3-2 defeat to Bohs in a play-off for the shield after the two sides finished level on points. Also that year the club reached its second consecutive FAI Cup final with Shamrock Rovers providing the opposition in front of a crowd of 38,500 on 21 April. Unfortunately for Rovers, it was Shams who ran out 3-0 winners. Despite this success the club decided that