There was a game on Thursday night you know. If you wanted a break from the rioting, there was a game of football as a sideshow.
In all seriousness, it was hard to take your eye on the antics off the pitch at times, but for those who watched the game they were rewarded with an enthralling ninety minutes as a top class Bohs side failed to break down a Dundalk which showed a new found resilience which will stand them to good stead over the coming weeks.
Dundalk made one change from the side which won in the Longford ; the injured John Flanagan replaced by Chris Lawless. Johnathan Prizeman again started, but was injured three minutes into the second half to be replaced by the only really viable option on the bench, David Hoey. Those Dundalk players tried to take on an, at times, awesome Bohs side.
Thankfully, Colin Hawkins was out for Bohs meaning there were gaps at the back to be exploited. However, bar one excellent chance which Ciaran Kavanagh fired left footed straight at Dempsey, there was little work for the Bohs defence to do in the first half.
Most of the action occured at the other end with Dundalk happy to still be 0-0 at the break. The excellent Glenn Crowe made a rare error to miss from six yards, with Tony Folan also forcing Connolly to save. There were numerous other let offs and scares with the Dundalk defence making some last ditch clearances. Maybe Lady Luck was to be on our side.
Bohs were bossing the game. How they are not top of the League with this side is really beyond me. Mahon must have been a disaster if he couldn't get results out of this lot who are far more incisive and quicker than Shels, and simply have more quality than Pats and Rovers. Their European experience shows, as they pass the ball around. The interplay between full backs and midfielders is a lesson to all teams with both Webb and O'Connor overlapping and adding an extra threat which Dundalk did not have any answer for.
Eight minutes into the second half, they got their just rewards. Glenn Crowe controlled a long pass excellently and looked set to score before John Connolly blocked his effort. Sadly the rebound fell to Morrison whose follow up was blocked. Fergal Harkin then followed up and his effort was cleared off the line in the direction of Crowe who made no mistake on this occasion. Dundalk were never going to be that lucky.
Earlier in the season we would have crumbled, but the enthusiasm and energy of Hoey, Kavanagh and Lawless saw Murray's men claw themselves back into the game. Haylock was again excellent up front, providing a release for the defence by always taking time on the ball and bringing players into the game. On 60 minutes, Kav could have equalised when a throw from Hoey fell in his direction ten yards out but his tame effort was blocked. He really isn't a goalscorer.
For Lawless, the game really was a severe footballing education. Playing against the class of Hunt, he was left chasing shadows for the opening half, well behind the play. As the game went on, he grew more confident and got with the pace of the game. This could well be the most important ninety minutes of his career.
The spirit of Lawless and Dundalk was embodied in the manner of the 75th minute equaliser. Donal Broughan did excellently to win the ball in defence and then carried the ball out before playing a sensible ball to Haylock who released Lawless. Suddenly, "Bucky" was clear but his touch let him down. Alas, he forced Avery John to make a last ditch tackle which wrongfooted his own keeper and deflected the ball into the path of Martin Reilly with the goal gaping. Somehow, Reilly managed to hit the crossbar but fortunately the ball dropped in the direction of Lawless who with his last burst of energy threw his head at the ball, putting it over the line while receiving a kick in the head as reward. Heroic stuff, epic stuff, Roy of The Rovers style. He stayed down for two minutes afterwards, showing the pain he put himself through in order to score. Game on.
Well, in fact most Dundalk fans were then wishing the game was over. Bohs pushed forward with more purpose and Folan fired wide almost from the restart. They created other chances, but somehow Dundalk held firm. The defenders did well. It's hard to blame them for allowing Bohs create these chances, they were just too bloody good. Bohs made a double sub, showing the depth in their squad by bringing on quality such as Bobby Ryan.
Out of the blue, Dundalk nearly stole the game on 88 minutes. A Hoey ball over the top put Reilly clean through on goal. Just outside the area, Caffrey hauled him down. It was a professional foul, he simply had to go. Would Reilly have scored ? After his earlier miss you really couldn't say with any certainty that he would have but it was still frustrating not knowing. It would have been the most amazing smash and grab all season by a long way.
Dundalk had little chance to press home the extra man advantage. Keddy fired the free kick over, and McGuinness headed a Broughan free wide soon after. A draw was a more than satisfactory result, and it was a shame the players did not receive a good ovation after the match. Believe me, most appreciate the effort put into that performance.
Suddenly we have gained four points in two games. With the gap now at three points with four games to go, it just goes to show how quickly things can change. Longford will now be very, very worried. No fat ladies singing yet.
If Dundalk show this kind of spirit and commitment they could well get out of this mess. You never know, it might even convince some of the idiots to watch the game.
1. John Connolly ..................................8
Excellent display, had to be strong in the face of strong pressure
2. John Whyte .....................................7
Got much better as the game went on. Improving.
3. David Crawley..................................8
Best game in some time, keep it up please.
4. Donal Broughan.................................7
Excellent part in the goal
5. Stephen McGuinness ..........................7
More and more like the McGuinness of Inchicore fame
6. Chris Lawless.......................................8
Gets knocked down, gets up again. Worth good rating for the goal alone
7. Ciaran Kavanagh..................................8
Never stopped running, 100% as per usual. Powerful
8. Martin Reilly..........................................6
Not really on song, but played his part
9. Gary Haylock........................................8
A real leader, awarded home man of the match
10. Johnathan Prizeman..............................6
Forced out by injury. Came close in first half, but came up against attacking Webb
11. James Keddy.........................................7
A lot of good defensive work often goes unnoticed
SUBS
12 David Hoey for Prizeman.........................7
Made some crucial runs at the right times. Did well.