Dramatic Dalymount Dublin Derbies, goals from the half way line and Pats penalty shootout success - Top 10 most read match updates for 2021

Pats had plenty of penalty shootout drama in the 2021 FAI Cup

Pats had plenty of penalty shootout drama in the 2021 FAI Cup Credit: Ben Whitley (ETPhotos)

In our most read series this Christmas, we’ve brought you our most read articles (20 to 11 and 10 to 1) and our most read match reports. Today we bring you our final ‘most read’ instalment – our Top 10 match updates.

10. League Updates: Dundalk 2 - 1 Shamrock Rovers

21 May – Macdara Ferris

There was certain symmetry in Shamrock Rovers’ record unbeaten league run coming to an end in Oriel Park. 

Prior to this 2-1 defeat to Dundalk, the last time the Hoops had lost in league action was in the same venue 608 days previously. That 3-2 win for the Lilywhites in September 2019 secured Dundalk their fifth league title in six seasons.

Last May goals from Patrick McEleney and Daniel Kelly either side of Joey O’Brien’s goal gave the Lilywhites the 2-1 win ending Rovers undefeated run at 33 games. The Hoops had eclipsed the previous record of 30 held jointly by a Rovers side from the 1926/27 season and Athlone Town in 1980/81.

Dundalk had only claimed 11 points from the 11 games prior to this game so it was an important win but didn’t really provide much impetus for the Lilywhites who limped along in the league for much of the rest of the season before Vinny Perth steered them away from the relegation playoff and into sixth by season’s end.

9. League Updates: St. Patrick's Athletic 2 - 2 Finn Harps

12 November – Ryan Kilbane

Finn Harps travelled for their final away game of the season to Inchicore desperate for points to avoid the relegation play-off. Their opponents St. Patrick’s Athletic were a fortnight away from the FAI Cup Final but still had a focus on the league as they needed a point to secure second spot in the league.



All four goals in the game came across a six minute period in the first half. The 2-2 draw was enough for Pat’s to claim that runners up spot and the point for Harps, along with a win in their final game, helped Harps retain their top flight status– ending two points clear of Waterford who would lose the relegation/promotion play-off final to UCD.

8. League Updates: Bohemians 3 - 1 Shamrock Rovers

12 November – Patrick O’Connor

There wasn’t any expectation that Bohemians would form a guard of honour to welcome Shamrock Rovers to Dalymount Park ahead of kick-off. With Bohemians banning away supporters from the ground in a tit-for-tat move following the game in Tallaght the previous month going ahead with only home fans, Rovers substitutes lined up to welcome their team onto the pitch much to the amusement of non-Hoops fans.

There had been quite a controversial cup game between the sides earlier in the season (see below on our list) and this was another Dalymount Park Dublin Derby that raised plenty of headlines. 

A Lee Grace own goal knocking the ball by Leon Pohls who was continuing in goal in place of Alan Mannus was cancelled out by Danny Mandriou who enjoyed his celebration in front of the crowd he previously played in front of.



Both managers had a ‘discussion’ over the celebration and both were sent to the stands.

After those managerial red cards, Bohs blitzed Rovers just prior to half time with Promise Omochere scoring a beaut before Rob Cornwall added another to give the Gypsies a 3-1 win.

7. FAI Cup Updates: Dundalk 3 - 1 Finn Harps (AET)

21 September – Macdara Ferris

The FAI Cup holders were really struggling in September flirting with the relegation play-off position and it seemed like retaining the cup was the only way European football would return to Oriel Park in 2022. They would finish sixth in the league – six points behind Derry City who would secure that last European spot.

Dundalk had thrown away the game four days previously in Finn Park having led 3-1 with six minutes remaining only to allow a Sean Boyd brace - the second coming five minutes into injury time - to send the game to a replay.

In this cup game, the Lilywhites found themselves 1-0 down to a Sean Boyd goal after just six minutes. However Vinny Perth’s men battled back with a Sean Murray strike taking the game to extra-time with the match won thanks to goals from Pat Hoban and Michael Duffy.

The Lilywhites would miss out on making a record seventh consecutive FAI Cup Final as they lost at the semi-final stages to the eventual winners St. Patrick’s Athletic. 

6. League Updates: Finn Harps 2 - 1 Shamrock Rovers

3 September – Macdara Ferris

In our Top 10, this is the third of four Shamrock Rovers matches and all four on our list ended in defeat for the Hoops.

This loss had many commenting that Rovers were in crisis as it was their fourth defeat in a row giving them their worst run since 2012 – but really it was an injury crisis that they were soon to come out of. With players returning they would win their next four league matches in a row and go on to win the league by 16 points.

In the previous three games to this, Rovers had lost home and away in the Europa Conference League play-off to Flora Tallinn and were knocked out of the FAI Cup by Bohs and then were overturned by a Finn Harps side who made it six victories in a row across league and FAI Cup with this 2-1 win.

Rovers had their skipper Ronan Finn suspended as was Danny Mandroiu, Pico Lopes was on World Cup qualifying duty with Cape Verde, Liam Scales had departed to Celtic and the Hoops were missing due to injury Lee Grace, Sean Hoare, Sean Kavanagh and Neil Farrugia. They only named six subs (four of them teenagers) and handed Barry Cotter a debut - a player who had just one training session with this new team mates having just joined the club.

Cotter had a great battle with Tunde Oluwabi in this match with the Belgian coming out on top scoring the winner five minutes from time and it was a thoroughly deserved win by a Finn Harps side as they claimed their first victory over Rovers in 13 years. 

5. League Updates: Dundalk 0 - 1 Bohemians

9 April – Macdara Ferris

Georgie Kelly scored the only goal of this game as he returned to cause his former club difficulty. The Lilywhites lost their first home game of the season against Harps 2-1 and followed it up with this 1-0 defeat to Bohs. 

It took some time for Kelly to get going in the league.  He would only score three goals in his first ten league games for the Gypsies but then things clicked for the Donegal man and he would win the league’s golden boot award racking up 21 goals, along with four in six Europa Conference League qualifiers. 

At the end of the season, Kelly was named PFAI Player of the Year but announced that he would be leaving Bohemians. 

4. FAI Cup Updates: Athlone Town 4 - 4 Waterford (Waterford win 4-2 on penalties)

23 July - Simon O’Gorman

120 mins + 5: Unbelievable stuff here. From the kick-off, the ball was tapped to Glen McAuley and he shot half the length of the pitch, over Paul Mattin's head and into the net for a last gasp equaliser. The game finishes 4-4 and we have pens.

Check out Gerard Browne’s reaction to Glen McAuley’s goal on Irish Football Fan TV:

3. Europa Conference League Qualifier Updates: Bohemians 2 - 1 PAOK

3 August – Sean O’Connor

The Gypsies took up residence on the banks of the River Dodder during the summer and boy did they enjoy playing their European homes games in the Aviva Stadium. Tickets for the games in Landsdowne Road were snapped up as soon as they went on sale as many Bohs fans took the opportunity to see their team play live in over 12 months.

They played three Europa Conference League games in the Aviva and won all three. They followed up 3-0 wins over Icelandic side Stjarnan and Luxembourg outfit F91 Dudelange, with this stunning 2-1 victory over Greek powerhouse PAOK that made our Top 10.

Unfortunately for Bohs the 2-1 win that they took into the away leg thanks to an Ali Coote brace weren’t enough for them, losing the second leg 2-0 in the Stadio Toumba in Salonika.

2. FAI Cup Updates: Bohemians 2 - 1 Shamrock Rovers

29 August 2021 – Macdara Ferris

This was quite the FAI Cup tie with two red cards – Georgie Kelly and Ronan Finn getting their marching orders from referee Neil Doyle – and a sublime winner for Bohs through Andy Lyons three minutes from time.

The Hoops had made the last two FAI Cup finals but this win sent Bohs on a journey that would culminate in their first FAI Cup Final appearance since 2008 but they couldn’t go on to claim the cup – losing out to St. Patrick’s Athletic.  

In the aftermath of this Dublin Derby in Dalymount Park, Hoops Head Coach Stephen Bradley made allegations of being spat at by stewards. Bohs hit back saying Bradley made ‘baseless allegations, which appear to be nothing more than a see-through and opportunistic attempt to influence match-day operations for future games between the clubs.’ 

Danny Mandriou picked up a suspension for throwing an object back into the crowd and Bohs were unhappy with their own fans behaviour in what they called ‘deeply personal and highly offensive chanting’ directed towards Mandriou. 

For the next Dublin derby Block A of the Jodi Stand was closed by order of the FAI as a result of fan behaviour in this fixture previously. That match saw both Keith Long and Stephen Bradley sent off as Bohs made it three wins and a draw in four games against the Hoops. 

In case you want to put a date in your diary, the two sides face each other for the first time next season on 11 March in Tallaght Stadium. 

27 August – Dylan O’Connell

Our Top 10 match updates list includes four FAI Cup ties and one European tie. These matches all sat outside the LOITV pass and so required additional payments if you wanted to watch the games.

Extratime.com does not have a paywall so it looks like LOI fans dropped by ET Towers to follow the action  on these games including this match from Cork.

There a scramble onto the site when the game went to a penalty shootout. It had looked like Chris Forrester had won the tie by scoring in the 89th minute only for Barry Coffey to find an equaliser four minutes into injury time to send the game into extra-time. 

Neither side could find a winner so the game went to a shoot-out but it was one that the Leesiders will want to forget. 

Pat’s went first with Forrester scoring and while Dylan McGlade scored his penalty, both Coffey and Darragh Crowley missed theirs meaning that after Ben McCormack and Jason McCelleand slotted home theirs, Alfie Lewis’ spot kick earned the Saints a place in the third round.

They would go all the way to the final where they would win another shootout to claim the trophy.

    About Macdara Ferris

    Macdara Ferris is a contributor since 2007 to Hoops Scene (Shamrock Rovers' match day programme) and is the co-author of two books on Shamrock Rovers - 'Tallaght Time: Shamrock Rovers 2009 to 2012' (with Karl … View Full Profile