Ireland’s most notorious football derby comes this Friday again when Shamrock Rovers take on Bohemians for the 228th time in league football. The rivalry which stretches back over one hundred years to when the sides had first met back in January 1915 stems from the positioning of both clubs within Dublin City. The city is divided by The River Liffey which runs through the centre of Dublin and separates the Southside of the city from the Northside of the city.
To those who might be unfamiliar, Ireland’s most successful club Shamrock Rovers are the Southside club while Ireland’s oldest club Bohemians are the Northside club. Despite the presence of other clubs within both sides of Dublin, Rovers and Bohs have historically attracted the majority of fans from the Southside and Northside areas respectively and been the biggest club of each.
Whether it was Gary Twigg’s brace in the 88th and 89th minute to hand the Hoops victory in their first Dublin Derby in Tallaght Stadium in 2009 or if it’s the famous fightback from Bohs from 4-1 down at halftime to win 6-4 in 2001, the meetings have never been short of notable incidents. However, the most talked about derby incident came back in 2004 when Shamrock Rovers fans famously threw a pig’s head onto the pitch at Dalymount Park aimed at ex Hoops hero Tony Grant who had famously crossed the divide to join Bohs at the start of that season.
Heading into this week’s derby, the pressure is starting to build on Shamrock Rovers and manager Stephen Bradley to get one over their arch-rivals. The Hoops have failed to win a derby in their last four matches, losing three of those. This, paired up with their underperformance in the league and the embarrassing FAI Cup defeat suffered at the hands of second-tier side Drogheda United last Friday, only adds to the already massive pressure of the fixture.
Bohemians Underdogs But Coming On The Back Of Some Fine Form
Despite their recent success in derbies against the Hoops, Bohemians would still come into the game as underdogs on paper. The club has a far inferior budget and a modest playing squad to their rivals which is reflected in their 7th place position in the standings and the 13 point gap between the two.
The Bohemians side does come into the derby in fine form, winning three of their last four in all competitions having scored 18 goals across their three victories. This would certainly give the Gypsies every hope that they could once again get one over on their rivals.
Talking Point: Dylan Watts
Another major talking point going into Friday’s contest is Shamrock Rovers player Dylan Watts. Watts was Man of the Match when the two clubs last met in Tallaght Stadium in April with a dominating performance in the middle of the park for Bohs as they ran out 2-1 winners. Since that game, Watts became the latest player to cross the River Liffey and join Rovers during the mid-season transfer window.
Watts had been on a six-month loan deal from Leicester City to the Northsiders. Following the end of that loan deal, his contract at Leicester was up and following his release, Stephen Bradley beat many clubs including Bohs to his signature. It will be interesting to see whether Watts can repeat his last derby performance in Tallaght again and get one over on his former club.
A Dublin Derby is never short of drama, and there is no doubt that Friday’s game would be no different.
