For the Bohemian women’s team, the wheel has turned full circle. On August 8th 2020, the club played its first ever senior Women’s Premier Division game, ironically in Ferrycarrig Park against Wexford, and now these short five years later, Bohs prepare to face the same opposition in their first national final.
Captaining the Gypsies tomorrow will be stalwart servant, goalkeeper Rachael Kelly, who has stood between the sticks for the last four seasons at the club. It’s been a long journey full of twists and turns, but Rachael is delighted to be leading the girls out onto the Wexford sod tomorrow and is determined to go one step further and become the first woman to lift a trophy in the club’s 135 years in existence.
“We cannot wait for this game,” she smiles. “We’ve already made history by being the first Bohs women’s team to reach a final, now we want to go one step further and bring home the silverware. We’ve made massive strides as a club in such a short time. We’ve had to be patient since we started out and we’ve certainly had our ups and downs. But so many people have put so much time and energy into this club since 2020, not just players and coaches, but also all the volunteers and supporters, without whom we simply wouldn’t be here. So, as a club, we deserve our big day; we’ve served our time. It’s up to us to complete the job now.”
“It’s such an honour to lead the girls out,” she continues, “these are the days you dream of as a player. When I first signed for Bohs I knew very quickly how special a club it is, then to be made captain was such a proud day. This final is such a privilege, to get the chance to walk out in front of what will be a big crowd I’m sure, full of our nearest and dearest and all those people in the club who’ve helped us along our journey.”
What’s been most remarkable for Bohs this season, aside from the run of results of course, is that their progress has been built on the outstanding development of young players who’ve risen to the challenge to become absolutely key to everything Alban Hysa and Alan Murphy have engineered. Rachael is quick to agree, and to endorse the role played by Bohs’ young talent this term.
“I’m so proud of all the girls, but especially of the youngsters, yes. They’ve been so important to the journey we’ve been on and have been a breath of fresh air, a new dynamic. They’ve brought new ideas and a lot of new energy! The fact that they’ve a chance of winning some silverware at only 17 or 18 years of age, is truly remarkable. It’s massive for them and hopefully tomorrow will give them a hunger for more. They won’t be phased by this final either. The message all week was to just prepare as if it’s any other game. All of us need to go back to our roots, to where it all started for us as kids and why we play the game. By that I mean we have to go out and enjoy it. Yes, there will be nerves and butterflies but that’s part of it all, you just have to use that to your advantage. We need to go out and do what comes naturally, that’s why we are here on this big stage in the first place after all.”
The skipper doesn’t forget the role played by some of the older, more established players either. It’s that blend that Rachael feels has been so integral to the impressive strides made by the squad this term.
“It’s a huge reward for those girls too,” she nods. “There has been a lot of heartbreak over the years and the likes of Katie Lovely and Lisa Murphy have been there through it all. Getting to the final makes it all worthwhile. After all those years of ‘nearlys’, our resilience has shone through. By the way, Lisa may have buried her penalty in the shoot-out, but she missed hers in training beforehand! I’m so proud of her for stepping up, whether she scored or not. The young players led the way, slotting theirs home, but it was a great script for Lisa to be the one to send us through to the final!”
It’s been a season of markers, Rachael feels. It’s the first time Bohs have got out of the groups in this AIC competition. They have a chance in a fortnight to reach a first FAI Cup final too, and also they’ve got results against the top sides, including a first ever league success over neighbours, Shelbourne.
“Emerging from the group shows our resilience as a team,” she says. “It shows the character we have, and that doesn’t happen overnight! It was a sweet moment, and to do it with an injury time winner against Linfield made us feel we could go all the way. What a moment that was for Savannah Kane! It had The Jodi Stand rocking and that’s where our belief has come from.”
They took that assurance up to Belfast in the quarter-finals and won well against a crack Glentoran side, the top team in the NIFL.
“A lot of people wrote us off for that one,” she grins wryly. “It was unknown territory as we’d never played them before, never mind up there. We got the early goal which gave us even more confidence, and it was also the day Hannah O’Brien got her first goal for the club.”
The semi-final against Shelbourne was perhaps the most dramatic in Bohs short women’s history, a 2-2 draw with red cards, penalty misses and rebounds being belted in, injury time equalisers, and eventually the drama of a shoot-out. Shels had come to Dalymount smarting from a 3-1 league defeat a fortnight before, but Rachael and Bohs rose to the challenge to put their near neighbours to the sword once again.
“That game will live with me forever,” Rachael laughs. “It had absolutely everything. We had over 1,300 there and I think they saw the passion we had and how much it means to us all to play for Bohemians. That win was 5 years in the making so why shouldn’t we enjoy being in a final this weekend!”
Rachael knows too that the previous two meetings this season between Bohs and Wexford, that have both resulted in wins for the Gypsies, will count for nothing in the final. She is only too aware that tomorrow’s game will have its own story.
“Absolutely not, they will have no impact whatsoever on this game. So many things happen on any matchday, and this will be a brand-new game of football. The stage is set and Wexford and Bohs is a new pairing for a final. We will relish the occasion and give it our all. I’d encourage everyone who can to come out and support us. The noise of the crowd at Dalymount has carried us through this year, I wonder do the fans truly realise how big a role they have? You feel you can do anything with that level of support behind you.”
She continues, “We know we have a unique chance to make history. We want to have a legacy, not just for future generations, but for our own academy as it stands, to show girls at our club that they have role models, they can aspire to great things here, that they have a club with real vision when it comes to women’s football. Make no mistake, we will be doing everything in our power to win the trophy tomorrow.”
Written by Tony Magner
Photographs by Stephen Burke