Shelley singled out for praise
Credit:
Bohemians manager Pat Fenlon admitted to being delighted with the recent performances registered by defender Brian Shelley as the Gypsies start to sneak back up the Premier Division table.
The 28-year-old has been one of the stand-out players for Bohs since Fenlon took charge in 2008, but he started this campaign slowly as the Phibsboro outfit struggled to introduce consistency to their game.
But now with seven points taken from their last three league games, Fenlon's men are back on track and Shelley's return to form has aided that as he offers something different from defence.
"Brian [Shelley] is starting to hit a bit of form that he was in last year," said Fenlon after the win over Drogheda United.
"Again, we’ve had to put him back [in central defence] and it probably suited us tonight because he’s able to step into play a lot as they had one up front. But he’s definitely getting to the level that he’s been at.
"We’re probably looking at him as a right-back at the moment. I think in home games he is probably more handy to have in a central area because he can go and start the game for us.
"The other two big lads [Ken Oman and Jason McGuinness] are probably not as good on the ball, they have other attributes but he can definitely start the game a little bit more for us when he’s central."
The 28-year-old has been one of the stand-out players for Bohs since Fenlon took charge in 2008, but he started this campaign slowly as the Phibsboro outfit struggled to introduce consistency to their game.
But now with seven points taken from their last three league games, Fenlon's men are back on track and Shelley's return to form has aided that as he offers something different from defence.
"Brian [Shelley] is starting to hit a bit of form that he was in last year," said Fenlon after the win over Drogheda United.
"Again, we’ve had to put him back [in central defence] and it probably suited us tonight because he’s able to step into play a lot as they had one up front. But he’s definitely getting to the level that he’s been at.
"We’re probably looking at him as a right-back at the moment. I think in home games he is probably more handy to have in a central area because he can go and start the game for us.
"The other two big lads [Ken Oman and Jason McGuinness] are probably not as good on the ball, they have other attributes but he can definitely start the game a little bit more for us when he’s central."
