Shamrock Rovers 1 Bohemians 0 Shamrock Rovers' Graham Burke celebrates with team-mates after scoring the winner in their SSE Airtricity Premier Division victory over Bohemians at Tallaght Stadium. Photo: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile European nights await but for now Shamrock Rovers still have some road to travel domestically as a hard-earned win over their old foes Bohemians gives them hope of chasing down another Dublin rival, league leaders Shelbourne, in that race for the league title. Having endured the frustration of a draw away to Derry on Friday, this game was also shaping up to lump more pain on the reigning champions as, despite being dominant in terms of possession and chances, they had been unable to break down Alan Reynolds’ side.
But leagues are won by squads, not just teams, and it was the Rovers bench which made the vital contribution as Neil Farrugia helped set up a chance for fellow sub Graham Burke to fire home six minutes from time. Now four points behind Shels, albeit with a game more played, Rovers can go into Friday’s derby at home to St Patrick’s Athletic very much in the race, while home fans were able to taunt away supporters with chants of “going down” with Bohs only four points clear of the relegation play-off place. Rovers should have been 3-0 up at half-time but a combination of slack finishing and some good goalkeeping from Kacper Chorazka led to that stalemate at the break.
Bohs were without a chance to trouble the goal of Leon Pohls in that first 45 minutes, but the home crowd were still frustrated knowing a derby double success, at home to Bohs here and at home again to St Pat’s, would be pivotal. After three minutes Rovers should really have been ahead. Trevor Clarke whipped in a cross from the left, Johnny Kenny left it for Darragh Burns to have a go and while the midfielder did make contact, he could only hit the post, Chorazka on hand to collect.
The home side had to rejig on 11 minutes when Clarke, making what was only his third start in the league since May, was forced off with an injury. Former Bohs man Danny Mandroiu showed his class on 24 minutes when his vision picked out the run of on-loan striker Kenny but his chipped effort was saved with relative ease by Chorazka. Mandroiu was again the provider, for Rovers and Kenny, two minutes later but Kenny rushed his final shot and it went well wide when he should really have at least hit the target.
Chorazka was needed yet again on 38 minutes, when Gary O’Neill pounced on an unconvincing clearance by Jevon Mills but O’Neill’s effort went straight at the Polish ’keeper. The away side had looked toothless in attack for the majority of that first half but they had some menace about them after the restart. Dayle Rooney did well to play in Danny Grant in the second minute of the half and on 51 minutes Grant slid a ball into the path of Dawson Devoy, who teed himself up for a shot which had venom but not enough accuracy as it went over the bar.
Needing something extra, Rovers hoped for inspiration off the bench, Farrugia and Burke introduced for the last half hour but chances were harder to come by than in that more open first half and home fans in the 6,119 crowd grew more nervous as the final whistle loomed, frustration when Chorazka pulled off a save to keep out a well-struck free kick from Burke. Bohs were offering little to nothing in attack but it looked as if they’d done enough to eke out a point, only for Burke to do the damage with six minutes left to play. The away side will claim that Farrugia should have been punished for a push on Paddy Kirk but as Farrugia crossed into the box, Dylan Watts laid it off for Burke to fire home, Bohs with no reply.
SHAMROCK ROVERS: Pohls; Cleary, Lopes, Grace; Burns (Farrugia 60), O’Neill, Watts (Nugent 86), Clarke (Honohan 11); Byrne (Burke 60), Mandroiu; Kenny (McNulty 86). BOHEMIANS: Chorazka; Smith, Mills, Byrne, Kirk; McDonnell (B McManus 71), Devoy (Okosun 86); Rooney (Akintunde 71), Tierney, Grant (McDaid 62); Meekison (Greive 62). REF: R Hennessy.
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