The scoreline suggests a tight and tense battle but the two goals from Rovers, scored in injury time, were consolation efforts at a stage when the game was beyond them as the champions showed more initiative in those moments than they did for long spells of the 90 minutes in one of the last Bohs-Rovers tussles to be played at Dalymount Park before the ground closes for a rebuild.
Points dropped in a home draw with Dundalk and an away loss to a Bohs side were the battles lost on the pitch, but the ongoing boardroom drama over Michael Noonan’s contract cannot be ignored as an issue causing distraction for the champions.
The concern will be how tame they were in this derby before that late, late show and the goals from Pico Lopes and Aaron Greene. Bohs manager Alan Reynold might bemoan the loss of their clean sheet record, but the two late goals only slight tarnish a terrific performance which sees maintain their position at the top of the table.
The attitude of the referee can often dictate how a derby pans out and Neil Doyle laid down a marker in terms of what he demanded here with an early booking for Bohs captain Dawson Devoy, for what looked like a rather innocuous foul on Cory O’Sullivan.
It was all very tense early on, nerves evident as Adam Brennan, playing in this fixture for the first time, panicked when he was set up in a good position on 10 minutes and sent the ball over the bar.
Connor Parsons of Bohemians (right) and Daniel Cleary of Shamrock Rovers have a difference of opinion at Dalymount Park. Photo: Sportsfile
Brennan was next to threaten on 24 minutes when good work on the right by ex-Bohs man Danny Grant saw the ball fall for Brennan and while he struck it well, goalkeeper Kacper Chorazka was in the right place to make the save and Bohs had Pat Hickey on hand to clear the danger.
Within two minutes Bohs were ahead, a fine team goal started at the back with the ball worked across the pitch, with a clever lay-off from Colm Whelan which put Parsons within sight of goal and he slid it past Ed McGinty.
Rovers were dominant in terms of possession but posed little threat. And it was Bohs who came up with the next attack, with Jordan Flores setting up Ross Tierney but Brennan managed to get in the way and block.
Rovers boss Stephen Bradley could have made changes after that sub-par first half, but he kept faith with his starting 11. They did not deliver as Rovers offered nothing for long periods of the second half and Bohs were 2-0 up early on. Ref Doyle didn’t hesitate to award a penalty when Dan Cleary pushed over Ross Tierney in the box and the impressive Colm Whelan stepped up to convert on 56 minutes.
After that came a series of changes in personnel for Rovers, but no change in the pattern of the game. Bohs were in firm control and Rovers were asleep as a cross from Rooney found Tierney in space inside the box, but McGinty smothered the danger.
Bohs came close to a third goal on 78 minutes when the impressive Hickey flicked on a Rooney corner, the industrious Adam McDonnell got a touch but Rovers man Graham Burke cleared off the line.
They did make it 3-0 on 87 minutes, after an awful attempt at a clearance from sub Tunmise Sobowale gifted possession to the sublime Tierney who beat McGinty with his shot.
Bohs had that 3-0 lead heading into the last minute, but from nowhere Rovers clawed back two goals. The first was a header from Pico Lopes, after Jack Byrne floated in one of his trademark free-kicks, and then Gypsy Aaron Greene showed his experience to pounce on the ball in the box and fire home. However, this revival was all too late.
BOHS – Chorazka; Morahan, Hickey, Todd, Flores; McDonnell, Devoy; Rooney, Parsons (Byrne 83), Tierney; Whelan (Vaughan 93).
ROVERS – McGinty; Lopes, Cleary (Mulraney 66), O’Sullivan; Grant (Sobowale 66), Watts (Byrne 66), Healy, Ozhianvuna (McGovern 73), Brennan; Burke; Noonan (Greene 80)
REF – N Doyle