Alan Reynolds would like a rare night where Bohemians win comfortably, but he says his side know that any result against Drogheda United will have to be hard earned.
Bohs’ run of six victories in seven games have all been by a single goal – five late winners and, their most recent one, last week’s 1-0 win against Shelbourne, where they found themselves clinging on in the dying moments to get over the line.
A first-half penalty from in-form Dayle Rooney, and Shels reduced to ten men for the foul that led to it, had Bohs in a commanding position against the defending champions.
But Bohs dominated for long spells of the game but spurned chances to make their numerical advantage count.
They then found themselves in defensive mode when, despite being reduced to nine men late on, Damien Duff’s side threw caution to the wind in search of an unlikely late equaliser.
16 May 2025; Kerr McInroy of Shelbourne in action against Bohemians players Dawson Devoy, left, and Niall Morahan during the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between Bohemians and Shelbourne at Dalymount Park in Dublin. Photo by Seb Daly/Sportsfile
Reynolds said: “We were delighted to keep the run we’ve been on going last week but we don’t seem to make life easy for ourselves! None of our wins have come easily.
“It was a different type of win than the ones we’ve had in the past few weeks. We went from chasing games and pushing hard to turn draws into wins to having to dig really deep and soak up what Shels were throwing at us.
“I was happy with our performance. We were on top for most of the game, created chances and, on another day, we take one of those and it becomes a different game then. Shels put it up to us towards the end of the game, but we coped with that period of pressure.
“The most important thing is that we got the win. They threw a lot at us in the last ten minutes but we held firm, got the win and kept the clean sheet.”
In one of the tightest and most competitive seasons in memory, Reynolds does not expect his hope for a rare easy night to come against Kevin Doherty’s Drogheda United.
16 May 2025; Bohemians manager Alan Reynolds, left, and strength and conditioning coach Stephen Lawlor celebrate after their side’s victory in the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division match between Bohemians and Shelbourne at Dalymount Park in Dublin. Photo by Seb Daly/Sportsfile
Drogs frustrated Bohs the last time the sides met, with Thomas Oluwa’s first-half goal enough for Doherty’s men to take all three points.
Reynolds said: “This is going to be another really difficult game for us. Drogheda have already beaten us in Dalymount this year so there is nobody under any illusions about how hard we have to work if we are to get a result against them.
“They’re an extremely well organised team and very hard to break down so we are going to have to be even more organised, and patient too, if we are to get a result against them.
“I keep on saying that every point we’ve got this season has been extremely hard worked for, and the way the league is this season, we have to keep those standards up and keep pushing ourselves every single time we play.
“But we are going up with confidence too. The mood around the club – both with the players and among the fans – is in a very different place now to when we last played Drogheda, so we all need to do everything in our power to make sure we keep that going and to keep building on the platform we’ve given ourselves over the past few weeks.”
Team news
Alex Lacey (hamstring) remains out but Leigh Kavanagh (hamstring) is back in contention.