Alan Reynolds has encouraged Bohemians fans to stick with his side and give them a lift when they make the short trip to take on Shelbourne at Tolka Park.

Bohs have had an up and down start to their 2024 campaign with three wins, a draw and four defeats from their opening eight games.

Tonight’s opponents, however, have been the surprise package this term and sit six points clear at the top of the table and remain unbeaten with six wins and three draws from their opening nine games.

But it is still very early days – as Bohs found after their own blistering start last season – and Reynolds is backing his side to improve.

He said: “When you work for a big Dublin club like Bohs you realise how important all derby games are to the fans.

“Shelbourne have really good players who are playing very well at the moment. They are top of the league for a reason, so we have to respect them as they have really good players who have shown they can hurt teams.

“But from our point of view, the most important thing is getting ourselves right. We have to deal with their attacking threats but we have to make sure we are an attacking threat ourselves.”

Reynolds says Bohs cannot have a repeat of last week’s game against Waterford where he felt they wasted possession in the opening half before giving away a cheap goal that allowed Keith Long’s side a platform to sit back and see out victory.

Reynolds said: “We didn’t start well, which was very frustrating given how well we started against Galway on Monday. We need to start like that every game but against Waterford we weren’t good enough.

“We gave away a cheap goal and that is something we have to rectify and have been working on because it gave Waterford the platform to change how they play and approach the game because they had a lead to cling on to.

“We’ve learned a lot over the last couple of weeks but we have to be better and work a lot harder than we did. We had our chances though but ultimately it was a frustrating night and we have to do better.”

Despite that frustration, Reynolds believes he has a side capable of improving and encouraged Bohs fans to get behind them and give them time.

He added: “The players need support and we need our fans to stick with us. There is obviously frustration this season, and we obviously all understand that.

“But we have some very good young players here, and a lot of new players too, who I feel can thrive if the fans stick with them as I have no doubt they will in what is a massive game now tonight.”

Team news

Dylan Connolly is a doubt. Keith Buckley and Rob Cornwall remain out.

Alan Reynolds takes charge of Bohemians at Dalymount Park for the first time tomorrow night and is relishing the occasion of taking on his hometown club.

Reynolds’ first home game in charge sees him pitted against Waterford where he served as assistant manager until his arrival at Bohemians last week having previously had two stints as manager of the club.

And in the away dugout, Keith Long returns to manage a side in Dalymount Park for the first time since his near eight-year tenure as Bohs manager came to an end in August 2022.

Reynolds said: “We both have a job to do and it is important that we do everything we can to push on now and get the win, and I’ve no doubt Keith will be saying the same.

“But it will be a big moment for Keith coming back to Dalymount too, and I hope he gets the good reception he deserves here. He speaks very fondly of the club and has a lot of good memories from his time here.

“For me, I’m managing Bohemians in Dalymount for the first time against my hometown club, which is exciting and something I am relishing personally, even if there might be a few divided loyalties in the family!”

Bohs come into tomorrow’s game on the back of an impressive 2-0 win away to Galway United on Monday night thanks to goals from Jevon Mills and James Akintunde.

It was the perfect response to a disappointing Dublin derby defeat away to Shamrock Rovers on Friday where Bohs impressed in the first half but collapsed in the second, succumbing to a 3-1 defeat.

Reynolds said: “That was the conversation we had with the players and the challenge for them going into Monday’s game was to start strongly but to keep it going.

“Against Shamrock Rovers, we played well for 30/35 minutes but then let it drop, so the aim for us was to sustain a high level of performance for a lot longer and keep going.

“The players were disappointed with themselves on Friday night as they feel they are better than that. We got a good response from them on Monday and now we want to build on that.

“With three games in eight days we haven’t had the time we would like on grass to work on certain things with them and to help them get better, but it was a good response in Galway.

“There is an honest bunch there who want to improve, and who want to give their very best for Bohemians.”

Both goals against Galway came from headers after set-pieces delivered by Dayle Rooney – the first a free-kick met by Mills and the second a corner met by Akintunde.

Reynolds said: “I’d love to take credit for those but I have to give credit to Derek Pender and Trevor Croly. They’ve worked hard on them with the players and they worked hard on them for the week before I came in too.

“They were good deliveries from Dayle and the boys attacked them well. But we defended well too, which is something we really needed to improve on from the game against Rovers.

“Galway are a big, strong and physical side but we stood up to them and defended very well, and again I have to give a lot of credit to the coaching staff for the work they’ve been doing with the players to help us improve at the back.”

Reynolds was delighted to send the travelling crowd at Eamon Deacy Park home happy too after their disappointment in Tallaght three nights beforehand.

He added: “Before the game, Derek Pender spoke to the players and touched on the fans constantly travelling away from home in huge numbers, and the importance of repaying the support that they give the team every week.

“It was my first time taking charge of the team outside of Dublin but from listening to the staff and players, I know that fans of this club sell out their allocation everywhere we travel and create good noise wherever we play, so it is important for us as a team to send them home happy and with something to cheer about.

“We were delighted to be able to do that on Monday and now we want to do it again at home.”

Team news

Martin Miller and Bart Kukulowvicz come back into contention, while Filip Piszczek is rated doubtful.

But Bohs will be without Adam McDonnell and Dylan Connolly as well as long-term absentees Keith Buckley and Rob Cornwall.

Alan Reynolds says he will not judge his Bohemians side after one game in charge but says they need to learn from their mistakes quickly to move up the table this season.

Reynolds’ side impressed in the early exchanges in his first game in charge away to Shamrock Rovers on Friday night and with the game scoreless at half-time, there was reason to be optimistic ahead of the second half.

But Bohs were subjected to a bruising performance by the hosts, succumbing to a 3-1 defeat that could have been more, with Declan McDaid’s goal in injury-time of little consolation.

Reynolds said: “I’m not going to judge the team after that one game. It’s going to take time for me to put in what I want to, and to get the team playing the way I want them to. But it was a very tough start.

“The game-plan early in the first half worked well and we were solid defensively. But we know that we needed to keep the ball a lot better.

“The goals we gave away early in the second half were cheap goals to concede, and we were chasing the game from then on.

“You can’t give a team like Rovers a leg-up like that. We needed to start the second half a lot better than we did.

“There’s a lot to learn from the game. I was pleased with some aspects early on but we didn’t keep the ball, didn’t pass the ball well enough, we were outdone physically at times and rode our luck when it came to defending set-pieces. These are all things we need to work on and get right quickly.”

Bohs face another tough away game this evening against a Galway United side buoyed by a win away to Derry City on Friday night.

Reynolds knows the challenge ahead having been assistant manager at Waterford when they lost 2-1 to the Tribesmen at Eamon Deacy Park last month.

He added: “We are looking forward to the trip but we know it’s another tough game. We had the players in for their recovery session on Saturday after Friday’s game and we had a good training session yesterday, so they know what is expected of them.

“I was only up in Galway a few weeks ago with Waterford. Galway are a very good side and are very effective. The way they’re playing is very smart. People will talk about John Caulfield and Ollie Horgan and playing one style but there’s a lot more to them than that.

“They had a great win on Friday against a good Derry side so we know that it is going to be a hard game. We will make some changes after Friday, and we will need everybody at their very best to get a result.”

Team news

Bart Kukulowicz, Martin Miller and Filip Piszczek are doubts. Keith Buckley and Rob Cornwall remain out.

Alan Reynolds takes his place in a Bohemians dugout for the first time tonight and it does not come much bigger as he aims for victory in a Dublin derby against Shamrock Rovers in Tallaght.

Over 10,000 will be in attendance for what will be the biggest league attendance in 33 years, but it is a prospect that Reynolds is relishing.

He said: “There is a big task and challenge ahead but we are excited about that. It’s a massive game for anyone involved, and we are all really looking forward to it.

“There’ll be over 10,000 at the game, so it should be a great night for Irish football but we want to give our supporters something to shout about.

“It’s an exciting one and the players are all itching for it. But we can’t settle for second best, that’s no good to us. There’s a lot of work to do, but that has to be the aim going into every game.

“The fans here are passionate, 100% passionate. There is a great energy about them and if we put together that energy with performances from our players, we should be hard to stop. Ultimately we need to win games, and that is up to me to deliver that.”

It’s been a busy few days for Reynolds. Confirmation of his appointment was made on Tuesday and he took training for the first time on Wednesday. So far, he likes what he has seen.

He said: “In training, they don’t look like a team that is lacking in confidence. They are hungry, and there are energetic young players.

“They want to learn and they want to improve. That’s my job, I have to improve them. I like being on the pitch, helping players and making them better. But as I said to the players, I just want winners in this dressing room.

“People are saying to me, ‘it’s a nice dressing room’. I don’t want a nice dressing room, I want a ruthless dressing room that wants to win things, and that’s where we’re going.

“I’m going to put demands on them. It’s 24/7. We’re full-on. What will be, will be. It can’t be through lack of work ethic or effort and that’s including myself and the staff.

“Everything has to go up. The way we train, prepare, rest, everything has to go up. And have no regrets when I look back.”

Team news

Bohemians are without Martin Miller (knee), Rob Cornwall, (knee) and Keith Buckley (knee).

Supporter information

Bohemians supporters heading to Tallaght Stadium tonight are advised to use the blue bridge from the Square Shopping Centre to access the away entrance.
Entry for away fans is via the turnstiles of Block 1 on the N81/the Square Shopping Centre side of the ground.

Declan Devine believes Bohemians’ defeat to Drogheda United must serve as a wake-up call for his side when Shelbourne provide the opposition at Dalymount Park tomorrow.

Bohs went into Monday’s game buoyed by a 1-0 win against St Patrick’s Athletic in their previous outing but Devine was left deeply frustrated as his side crumbled against Drogs at Weavers Park.

He said: “Our general play was unrecognisable to the game against St Pat’s. It was a really disappointing night, and a really disappointing team performance. We lacked intensity about our play, and the manner of the goals that we gave away was very disappointing.

“Having had the performance we had in Inchicore, Monday was a strange night for us. It wasn’t good enough, and is a night that we want to put to bed. We want a response from the players because we know we are better than that.

“It has got to serve as a wake-up call for us. We have to make sure that every time we take to the pitch we have got to bring the intensity we are capable of with us onto the pitch, and we have to be structured in how we approach games.

“There was a huge element of luck in the two goals Drogheda scored but both were very preventable. We have to make sure that if anyone is to do anything against us that they have to work a hell of a lot harder for it than Drogheda did.

“The last couple of weeks have been important for us on the training pitch with so many new players in and getting everyone up to speed. But we all know that our work in training has to be replicated on the pitch, and we let ourselves down on Monday night.

“As a group, we have spoken about that, and now we have to go out and perform and put the Drogheda result and performance to bed.”

But the fixture list doesn’t get any easier with Shelbourne, early league leaders with three wins and a draw from their opening four games, the opposition at Dalymount Park.

Devine said: “We understand the disappointment from Monday, but this game couldn’t come quick enough for us and we have been looking forward to it all week.

“I am happy with how the group has gelled in training. They have been together now a wee bit longer, have got to know each other, and now it is a case of them going out there and showing what they are capable of against difficult opponents.

“When we play in Dalymount, there is no better place to play. But we have a responsibility as well to make sure the fans have something to get behind. Our form at Dalymount last year was strong, and we need to build on that now. Our home form has to be right on the money.

“Shelbourne have had an outstanding start to the season and have already had some big wins. They have performed very well and have strengthened their squad very well as well.

“Our games against Shelbourne last year were generally tight affairs, so we know that going into the game that we are going to have to be at our very best.

“But we are very much looking forward to playing at Dalymount Park. We were disappointed that the game against Dundalk last Friday was called off as we want to be putting in performances in front of our home fans.

“It’s a big rival now coming into our backyard now, another Dublin derby, so there is no extra motivation needed.”

Team news

Paddy Kirk and Declan McDaid are doubts with knock.

James McManus will miss this one but will continue his recovery from a foot injury by playing for the U20s this weekend.

Keith Buckley (knee) and Rob Cornwall (knee) remain out.