Bohemian FC  3 - 1  Waterford United

Bohemians tonight showed why they are the best team in Ireland as they proved too strong for a Blues side that were outplayed in the first half, but showed great heart to stage a rousing finale. 3-0 up after 42 minutes, the Dubliners had the game sewn up in a first half they dominated, but United, to their credit, clawed their way back into the game, and finished with a charge that might have made the game somewhat more even if they could have produced it earlier.

The Blues started the game with the same line-up as the previous two matches, but it was a side lacking that ability to get a hold of the game that characterised those previous two outings. This time, United in the first half were second best to a very, very good Bohs side, and they found themselves defending a Killian Brennan corner just 30 seconds in. That was cleared, but Brennan continued to cause problems early on, and he opened the scoring after just seven minutes had passed. A handball on the right edge of the box lead to the winger clipping a sweetly struck free kick up over the wall and inside the near post, giving Michael Devine no chance.

Waterford’s early ripostes came mainly through a series of dangerous Alan Carey free kicks, but they never really troubled the Bohs defence, and on the half hour mark the gap was widened in somewhat controversial circumstances when a Kevin Murray shove on Marc Hughes was spotted by referee Derek Tomney, who pointed to the spot. Tomney’s assistant, however, didn’t spot a foul on Vinny Sullivan in the build up to the penalty, and so it stood. Brennan struck it low to his right, sending Devine the wrong way.

If the second was soft, the third was a positive gift. Ken Oman and Brennan again had already had half chances for the Dublin side, when, on 42 minutes, Neale Fenn was teed up by a neat lay-off from Joey Ndo. Fenn’s shot from distance was swerving viciously, and seemed to completely catch out Devine at the last second as it squirmed through his hands and dropped over the line. The Blues ended the half on the attack, when Willie John Kiely headed Vinny Sullivan’s cross a couple of yards wide, but in truth it was a comfortable half for the Phibsboro outfit, and keeper Brian Murphy did not have a save to make.

United began to push on more after the break, also leaving more gaps at the back, as the game opened out. Within a minute Carey had made a great run down the right, and though thwarted by Ndo, the ball broke to Dave Warren on the edge of the area, but his shot was driven high over the top. The Blues defence rode their luck in the 56th minute, when Carey stumbled on the ball in the centre of the area with Ndo hovering, and had to stab it behind for a corner. Glen Cronin was given acres of space from the restart to fire in low from distance, but when the ball broke to Fenn the flag went straight up, although Devine had made a superb stop in any case.

As United kept pushing forward they began to get into the game more and more, and Sullivan (twice) and Warren had good sights of goal before the rangy striker spurned the best chance of the half on 74 minutes. A fine Carey through ball was deftly flicked on by Cummins, only for Sullivan to fire agonisingly over from 10 yards out. Within six minutes, though, the Blues had one back. Kevin Waters flighted in a free kick from the left which slipped through Brian Murphy’s grasp and fell at the feet of Cummins beyond the far post, the big Corkman keeping his head to slip a short pass inside to Kenny Browne, who thumped it home to the roof of the net.

As Waterford kept up the pressure, another nice move moments later saw Cummins seek out Paul Walsh in acres of space, but Brennan got in to make a fine saving interception. Almost immediately the pair combined again, Walsh teed up perfectly but firing straight at Murphy. Cummins himself whistled a superbly struck effort from distance inches wide of the right upright on 82 minutes, and though United finished the game very much on the front foot, they came no closer to pegging the lead back any further.

It was a fine finishing spell to the game, and salvaged a huge amount of Blue pride, but it ultimately proved too little too late, and Bohemians saw out the three minutes of injury time to be crowned deserved champions. For Waterford, a very disappointing was to finish, but another excellent Cup run, the second of the season, with the biggest one yet to come. And, of course, the small matter of the promotion chase, which swings back around in three days time with the visit of Longford Town on Tuesday night.

Bohemians: Brian Murphy; Owen Heary, Brian Shelley, Ken Oman, Conor Powell; Paul Keegan (Ryan McEvoy 78), Joseph Ndo (Anto Murphy 70), Glenn Cronin, Killian Brennan; Marc Hughes, Neale Fenn (Glen Crowe 85) - subs: Matt Gregg, Jason Byrne

Goals: Brennan 7, 30 (pen), Fenn 42

Booked: Shelley, Fenn

Waterford United: Michael Devine; Alan Carey, Kevin Murray, Kenny Browne, Seamus Long (Kevin Waters 69); Stephen Grant, Dave Warren (Paul Walsh 69), John Kearney; Vinny Sullivan, Graham Cummins, Willie John Kiely – subs: Kieran Fitzgerald, Gary Dunphy, Joe Mulcahy

Goals: Browne 80

Booked: Devine, Kiely

Referee: Derek Tomney (Dublin)