DAN’S THE BOHS MAN IN DERBY DELIGHT
THE jubilant supporters sang loud in celebration ‘There’s only one Stephen Bradley’. Just a shame for the Shamrock Rovers boss that it was the gleeful Bohemians faithful savouring a stirring comeback over their fiercest rivals on a dramatic opening night in the Premier Division.
For almost three quarters of this game it looked as if Bohs would simply flounder on their way to a timid defeat following Ronan Finn’s first-half opener.
But then came the drama in 12 second-half minutes as defender Dan Casey struck a headed double — with a bit of help from some chaotic defending and goalkeeping — and Paddy Kavanagh rifled home another in between.
The game was turned on its head. Despair turned to elation for Bohs while the Rovers dressing room will now face a stringent examination about how this collapse materialised.
Derbies at the best of times rouse the passions like no other fixture and after four months of an off-season, the sense of anticipation is even greater. Dalymount Park was sold for this opening night two weeks ago, a sign of the appetite for this rivalry.
The supporters sang, taunted and roared every tackle and flick on — there was very little passing — as on the pitch for 72 minutes there was little of note other than the forward players from both teams struggling in the final third.
Bohs’ Dinny Corcoran fluffed his lines inside the box at the back post, Burke made a hames of an attempted lob, while Brandon Miele suffered the indignation of attempting a left-foot shot only for his standing boot to poke the ball away just in time for him to take a swing at fresh air.
Miele was suitably embarrassed while Bohs fans jeered him with relish. An indication of just how congested the play in the centre of the park was came from Brian Kerr’s quip in his analysis of the first half: ‘They’re all packed in there in the middle, you could cover them with a big blanket from Clerys... if Clerys wasn’t closed down.’
That old Dublin institution is no more and this one in Phibsborough will soon get a facelift but, for the time being, Dalymount remains intact with all its creaky concrete charm. It was shaking to its very core with each goal towards the end but it was Rovers who struck first.
Greg Bolger’s hopeful free kick into the box in the 23rd minute was met by Gary Shaw in the air, beating Casey, and Graham Burke’s ingenuity with his back to goal saw him hook a shot over his shoulder that beat Shane Supple but clipped the post.
Finn was alive to the rebound and slotted the bouncing ball into the roof of the net as the Rovers fans behind the goal went wild.
Everything looked as if it was going to plan for Rovers until Keith Ward’s corner in the 72nd minute arrowed its way towards Casey, who held off Lee Grace to direct a fine header into the top corner.
Bohs’ tails were up and when a long ball forward in the 81st minute was flicked on by Oscar Brennan and then again by Ward, Kavanagh was one-on-one with Kevin Horgan. The winger rifled his effort into the roof of the net as pandemonium reigned.
There was still time for more limbs to suffer among the delirious home support when a game of ping-pong in the box led to Casey looping a header over the hapless Horgan.