Bohemians and Shamrock Rovers shared the spoils after an entertaining 1-1 draw in a fiery Dublin Derby at a raucous Dalymount Park.
Filip Piczcek blasted Bohs in front midway through the first half and they were punished for passing up multiple chances to double their lead when Johnny Kenny finished to the net for the equaliser before the break.
Bohemians showed what they can produce under Alan Reynolds with a rip roaring first half performance but they were dead on their feet early in the second half as Shamrock Rovers dominated and pushed for a winner.
Rovers extend their unbeaten run over their bitter rivals to six games stretching back to September 2022 and remain two points behind leaders Shelbourne.
Dalymount was rocking well before kick off and the game began amid a cloud of pyro infused smoke and perhaps it played a part in the opening 30 seconds as Aboubacar Keita's rash clearance fell to Kenny who should have scored.
Darragh Nugent’s defence splitting pass set up Aaron Greene to open the scoring but he was thwarted by Kacper Chorazka.
Bohs brought fire and brimstone to this game and it was played at a breathtaking pace and they were a threat on the counter while Keita had a header cleared off the line.
Bohs decided to press high and their intensity paid off as Piszczek rattled the roof of the net. Jordan Flores headed Pohls’ clearance back into the box and James Akintunde, who appeared to be offside, set up the towering Pole who slammed home with his left foot.
Dayle Rooney and Piczcek should have capped off a dream half an hour for Bohs with the former attempting a dinked finish which dropped the wrong side of the post.
Rovers, having been very fortunate not to concede a second, were gifted a way back into the game.
Aaron Greene’s low cross left Paddy Kirk in a catch 22 situation and while he prevented a back post tap in, the ball fell to Kenny who gleefully swept home the equaliser three minutes from the whistle.
The champions finished the half on top with Chorazka beating away a Kenny effort as the frenzy Bohs brought to the party became a nervy silence.
After a rip roaring opening half the second period was more subdued with Shamrock Rovers taking control.
Rovers flew out of the traps after the break as Nugent’s influence grew, Trevor Clarke rampaged forward and went close on a couple of occasions. Bohemians never really recovered from the concession of an equaliser before half time and were hanging on.
Stephen Bradley’s side were boosted by the returns of Neil Farrugia and Jack Byrne to the bench and both came on to add extra weight to their dominance with Byrne making his first appearance since September.
The visitors kept piling on the pressure but weren’t able to fashion an opportunity for a winner.
Bohemians: Kacper Chorazka, Patrick Kirk, Aboubacar Keita, Jordan Flores (McDaid 75), Dayle Rooney, Filip Piszczek (Connolly 66), James Akintunde (McManus 75), Adam McDonnell, Brian McManus (Clarke 10), Jevon Mills, Luke Matheson
Shamrock Rovers: Leon Pohls, Josh Honohan, Pico Lopes, Daniel Cleary, Dylan Watts (Poom 35), Aaron Greene, Darragh Nugent, Trevor Clarke (Farrugia 78), Darragh Burns (Kavanagh 85), Johnny Kenny, Conan Noonan (Byrne 78)
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