10,000 MANIACS heading for Tallaght
Bradley relishing sell-out derby tie
ON his own admission Stephen Bradley isn’t the greatest fella to have on your team for a Shamrock Rovers quiz night.
Earlier this year, he was at a fans’ quiz and when the questions turned to events involving the Hoops on his watch, he started scratching his head.
‘There were a lot of Rovers questions, all under my term, and I was probably the worst one answering them. I got every one of them wrong.
‘I said to Glenn (Cronin) afterwards,
“To see the ground full on all sides will be brilliant”
“I’m getting a bit worried here, about my memory”. Thankfully, he said he was the same,’ said Bradley
It is certain that tonight’s duel with Bohemians will figure in future quiz nights as Tallaght Stadium is set to host a record crowd, close to 10,000, if not higher.
As a comparison, the average attendance in English League One in 2022-23 was 10,611.
Build it and they will come, goes the oft misquoted line from ‘Field of Dreams’, the movie shot in 1989 when Rovers didn’t have a home, or a pot to pee in, and Tallaght Stadium wasn’t even a pipe dream.
‘When we came in the average attendance was 1,2001,300, maybe less. We have built it up as a place to where the average is really good,’ said Bradley.
‘It will be brilliant to see the stadium sold out on all four sides, for everyone involved in the league. It shows where we can go, if you have the right facilities. ‘But it can’t be once or twice a season, it has to be on a regular basis and I firmly believe we can do that. And I believe a lot of clubs around the league can, too. ‘If you can’t see growth in what you are doing, as an individual, as a team, as a club, then it’s time for you to move on, step away and let someone else take it.’ Bradley comes up against a new Bohs manager, Alan Reynolds, who has had a short window of preparation after returning from duty with the Ireland Under 21s.
‘I knew he would go in late because of the U21s. How much time he’s had to work with them I don’t know. What hasn’t changed is their attacking players. (Dylan) Connolly is a real threat, (Dayle) Rooney we know, they have threats in the attacking areas of the pitch.
‘I’m not sure if they’ve had time to work on anything new but what they have is good players.’
Heading into the first doubleheader of the season, Bradley’s side are 10 points behind Shelbourne but the manager is relaxed, and doesn’t grumble about an injury list that includes Jack Byrne, Seán Kavanagh, Aaron McEneff and Neil Farrugia.
A year ago, Rovers got stuck on the grid before hitting top gear and lapping everyone.
They are too good to stay in third gear for much longer and Bohs, who could welcome back James Talbot, will need to be at their best to avoid another difficult night in Dublin 24 where it’s almost five years without a win.
As for Bradley, this summer marks eight years since his first derby win over Bohs, one he can recall.
‘We’d a number of young players on the pitch at the time. Seán Boyd was really, really good for us then and caused real problems that day. It was a big game for me, my first Dublin derby as manager against Bohs.’
‘No (other) games stick out. I think when you’re in it you just prepare for the game and, win, lose or draw, you move on, it sounds boring but that’s your mind-set.’
As for the end of the season quiz, here’s a potential question: how many successive league titles did Rovers win under Bradley, was it four, five or more?
Results over the Easter Weekend will give an indication of the fight within the belly of the champions.