Alan Reynolds says his Bohemians side need to continue to ask questions in the final third if they are to build on last week’s 3-0 win away to Waterford when they travel to face St Patrick’s Athletic in Richmond Park.

Bohs went into last week’s game at the RSC against the then top-of-the-table Waterford looking to reverse a run of three narrow defeats on the spin.

Given that form, there was perhaps a feeling of ‘any win will do’ so fans were pleasantly surprised to see Bohs march into a 3-0 lead in the first half, thanks to a hat-trick for Kilkenny man Colm Whelan in only his second start for the club.

While two of Whelan’s treble came from the penalty spot, there was no denying that the performance was a complete reversal on how Bohs played four days previously when they failed to lay a glove on Drogheda in a 1-0 defeat at Dalymount Park.

Now Reynolds hopes it is a sign of progression and of things to come, and said: “We went into the game after three defeats, so obviously I was pleased with the resolve and character of the players to put on the display that they did away from home against a team who had won three of their opening four games and who had their tails up.

“There’s no denying that it was a completely different performance to how we played against Drogheda. As well as the character we showed, the most pleasing thing about it was our attacking play.

“For all the time on the ball that we had against Drogheda, we didn’t ask enough questions of them, but we asked plenty of Waterford.

“We have attacking players at this club and that is what we expect of them. We need to take more risks when we are in attacking positions in the final third; take shots, get balls into the box and ask real questions of opposition defenders and goalkeepers. That’s what we did in Waterford, and we got the result the players deserved.

“We looked more organised than we had done in the previous games, and the players had a much greater understanding of one another. The challenge for us now is to maintain and sustain that, and get better still.

“We are working extremely hard – the work ethic of the group is excellent – but that needs to continue to translate to performances on the pitch.”

Reynolds couldn’t hide his delight for Whelan, a player he previously worked with at Waterford, Derry City and the Ireland U21s, grabbing the headlines against his former club.

The 24-year-old has suffered an injury-plagued couple of years but Reynolds is backing his man to make a real impact this season.

Reynolds said: “For me, going in the closed season, of all the players we targeted, Colly was the one above all that I really wanted to bring to the club because I know how good he can be.

“He is a terrific talent, a proper goalscorer and I was delighted to bring him to the club as I know if he finally gets a break, he can be a fabulous player for this club.

“The hat-trick meant a lot to him, and after the couple of years he had, it was brilliant to hear the fans take to him the way they did and chant his name.

“It meant the world to him and he’s a popular guy too, so all the players were delighted for him as well. He has had a tough couple of years as everyone knows with the injury he has had, so I don’t want to put too much pressure on him but I know how much he wants to kick on now too.”

Tomorrow, Bohs face a St Pat’s side that were many people’s tip for league winners this term. Stephen Kenny’s side had started the season not too unlike Reynolds’ side, and sit one point ahead of them in the table in fifth place.

Reynolds added: “St Pat’s are a serious side with quality attacking players who go all-out and who can do damage, as well as having the most successful manager operating in the league in Stephen Kenny.

“Stephen always wants his sides to have a go, and that’s even more the case when they are playing at home so we know how tough a game this is going to be.

“But we have quality players ourselves, who can cause plenty of problems too. We have our homework done, and we are really looking forward to it.”

Team news

Rob Cornwall and Alex Lacey are ruled out, while Lys Mousset and Dayle Rooney are doubts.

Bohemian FC is delighted to confirm that academy graduate goalkeeper Rian Hogan has signed his first professional contract with the club.

Head of Academy Trevor Croly said: “Rian is a great young lad, who came into our system last year. He has proven himself game upon game.

“There is great momentum in his development, he is always improving. He has really impressed everyone, he is a great player to coach because he is so keen to improve himself.

“His distribution is particularly good, and we are delighted to be able to reward his progression because we feel he has a great future ahead of him.”

Hogan, 18, said: “I’m delighted to have signed my first professional contract at Bohs. I’m really grateful to all my coaches at the club over the past year and a half who have helped me get to this point and I can’t wait to push on now.

“I have brilliant goalkeepers ahead of me that I can learn a lot from and bring it into my game as well as the help from goalkeeping coach Seán Fogarty, who has been brilliant with me over the past year.

“It’s a no-brainer for me to sign this contract at Bohs. You look at the first team squad and there are a lot of players who have come through the academy, so I know if I work hard, take on my coaches’ advice and play well, that the opportunities will be there. I’m really excited for the future and showing people what I am capable of.”

Alan Reynolds says Bohemians need to win back the trust of supporters and rise to the challenge of expectation.

After the initial high of the opening day of the season win against Shamrock Rovers, Bohs have crashed back down to earth with defeats against Derry City, Cork City and Drogheda United.

Reynolds admits Monday’s loss to Drogheda was the most disappointing yet as Bohs failed to perform in front of their home fans in their first game of the season at Dalymount Park.

He said: “The results haven’t been good enough but what was most disappointing was how we performed against Drogheda on Monday night.

“Against Cork City on Friday, we created chances, got crosses in but didn’t take our chances when presented with them.

“It was different on Monday in that despite all the possession that we had, we didn’t get at Drogheda at all.

“It was our first game at Dalymount this season and you want to set a marker, and give your fans something to get behind but we simply didn’t do that.

“We have good quality players in our team but we didn’t show that quality, and we didn’t show the aggression, creativity or penetration that our fans expect of us and that we expect of ourselves.

“Fans are frustrated by that and, as I said on Monday night, it is up to us now to roll up our sleeves and, collectively as a team and as a backroom team, to win back their trust.”

Those efforts start away to Reynolds’ former club Waterford, who went top of the table with victory against Cork City on Monday.

With three wins from their opening four games, Keith Long’s side have lost only to champions Shelbourne so far and have also claimed the scalps of Derry City and Sligo Rovers.

Reynolds said: “Waterford have had a great start to the season, so we have to be a lot better than we have been over the past couple of weeks. Monday simply wasn’t good enough.

“We have some quality players at the club now but we need to play with more confidence and conviction, and assert ourselves on the opposition.”

Team news

The experienced duo of captain Keith Buckley and Jordan Flores, who both started against Cork City last Friday but who were not risked on Monday against Drogheda United after injury lay-offs, come back into contention.

However there are doubts over Lys Mousset and Rob Cornwall, while Alex Lacey remains out.

Alan Reynolds says his Bohemians side are relishing being back on home turf for the first time this season.

The club’s decision to play the opening game of the season against Shamrock Rovers at the Aviva Stadium, followed by successive away trips to Derry City and Cork City, has Bohs players chomping at the bit to finally play a game at Dalymount Park this season.

With all home sections sold out, and just a handful of tickets remaining for travelling fans in the Mono Stand, Reynolds is hoping his side will make the most of home advantage.

He said: “It’s our first game in Dalymount this season, which is something the new players have been really looking forward to.

“We have a lot of new players in the group this season, and they’ve been told what a great place Dalymount is for atmosphere, so we all want to start the game positively as we mean to go on and have our fans behind us from the start.

“We know that our supporters have had to dig deep for three difficult opening games and have been right behind us in the Aviva and in the two away games at either end of the country that we’ve had so far. They’ve supported us in big numbers and we want to repay them for that.

“There is something special and different about playing in front of your own supporters in a packed out Jodi Stand, so that is something that we have all really been looking forward to, and we hope that it’ll be a cracking atmosphere.

“The fans have a part to play but the onus is on our players to produce at home in front of them. We want our players to excite our fans, and be aggressive in and out of possession, to get the crowd behind them.”

Reynolds returns to the dugout having had to watch from the gantry in Turner’s Cross on Friday as a result of being sent to the stands in the previous game against Derry City.

He watched on in frustration as Bohs, despite bossing lengthy periods of the first half, failed to make their dominance count.

A deflected shot from skipper Keith Buckley, making his first start after an agonising 18-month lay-off, sent the sizeable travelling contingent into raptures after 21 minutes, and was no more than Bohs deserved.

But their failure to convert the many first-half goalscoring opportunities they had created ended up costing Bohs dearly, with the experienced duo of Seán Maguire and Ruairí Keating combining to send Bohs home empty-handed.

First, Maguire popped up for the equaliser ten minutes before the interval and, after Bohs failed to match their performance of the first half, Keating punished them seven minutes from time.

Reynolds said: “We were really frustrated with the result. When you watch back the game, we had so much of the ball in the first half, played some really good stuff and created more than enough chances to put ourselves out of sight.

“We showed in that period that we have players who can cause a lot of problems and open up teams, but we didn’t test the goalkeeper enough for all the chances we created. We should have been further ahead than 1-0, and you have to make those periods count.

“We weren’t the same team after Cork City scored the equaliser so we have to be stronger mentally when we suffer a setback, and show more composure when we have those periods of dominance.”

Bohs will have to work even harder to create and take their chances against Kevin Doherty’s Drogheda United, who have conceded just once in their opening three games of the season.

Reynolds added: “Every year people seem to underestimate Drogheda and they continue to silence the doubters.

“They won the Cup last year, and have a really good side who are an organised group. They’re three games in, unbeaten and have only conceded once so there’s no doubt in our minds as to how good a team they are and how hard we are going to have to work against them, but we are really looking forward to that challenge.”

Team news

Rob Cornwall is suspended, while Jordan Flores (Achilles), Rhys Brennan (shoulder) and Alex Lacey (calf) are doubts.

Alan Reynolds says his Bohemians side are relishing the challenge of another tough away game as they look to get back to winning ways against Cork City at Turner’s Cross.

Bohs’ 2025 campaign got off to the perfect start a fortnight ago with victory against rivals Shamrock Rovers at the Aviva Stadium.

But a stunning free-kick from Michael Duffy, a regular thorn in Bohs’ side over the years, saw Reynolds’ men leave Derry City empty-handed a week ago.

Reynolds will watch tomorrow’s game from the stands after both he and opposite number Tiernan Lynch were sent from their respective dugouts at the Brandywell last week, but is backing his side to put in a performance on Leeside.

He said: “We were disappointed with the result against Derry. Between the wind and the pitch, the game was obviously played in tough conditions but we know we didn’t create enough opportunities and we needed to be better in possession.

“It was a pretty even game. Derry started well but neither side really managed to get a hold of the game, and other than Michael Duffy’s moment of brilliance with the free-kick, there wasn’t a whole lot of chances for either team.

“It’s very early days, we are two games into a 36-game season. We were delighted with how we started two weeks ago, without getting carried away, and likewise we have to take last week’s result on the chin, learn from it, and respond.

“We knew coming into this season that we were starting our league season against two teams with eyes on winning the league title.

“We won one of them, we lost the other by a goal scored by a wonderful free-kick, so we are not going to be too hard on ourselves either.

“Over the course of the two games we have played, we have seen plenty to be encouraged by while also identifying where we need to improve, and the players are striving to do so.

“Our third game now is another really tough one, so we know we have to be better.”

That comes against newly-promoted Cork City at what is expected to be a packed Turner’s Cross.

Tim Clancy’s side started their campaign with a 2-2 draw at home to Galway United a fortnight ago but were left frustrated on Sunday after their away game against Shamrock Rovers was called off 45 minutes before it was due to kick off.

Reynolds added: “Cork City are riding high after promotion and we are in no doubt that it is going to be another tough game as Tim will be determined to make Turner’s Cross an intimidating place for teams to play as it always has been.

“A lot has been said about the renewed interest in the league, the buzz about the league getting bigger and bigger, and the crowds that are going to games now, so these are exactly the kind of venues and games that players should be relishing to play in.

“A packed-out Turner’s Cross with the crowd on your back is one of the best places in the league to play football, so our players are relishing the challenge.

“I know that our supporters are travelling down again in massive numbers. It won’t be easy, and we’ll need those fans right behind us, but we’ll be doing everything in our power to send them back up the road happy.”

Team news

Rhys Brennan (shoulder) and Alex Lacey (calf) are doubts but Jordan Flores (calf) comes back into contention.

Bohemian FC can confirm that defender Seán Grehan has returned to the club on loan from Crystal Palace.

The centre-back, 21 last month, came through the ranks at St Kevin’s Boys, was a league winner with the Bohs U17s under Derek Pender in 2020, signed his first professional deal with Bohemians in 2021, and joined Palace in the summer of 2022.

Grehan enjoyed a loan spell with Carlisle United last season, returns to Bohs until June 14 and is in contention to go straight into the matchday squad for tonight’s SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division game away to Derry City.

Grehan is the eighth new addition to Alan Reynolds’ squad this season following the permanent signings of Lys Mousset, Connor Parsons, Alex Lacey, Colm Whelan, Niall Morahan and John Mountney, and signing of fellow loanee Kian Best.

Welcoming Grehan back to Dalymount Park, manager Alan Reynolds said:

“We’re delighted to bring Seán back to the club. He knows the club, he knows a lot of the players and staff here already, and he has an affinity with Bohs from his time coming through the ranks here and with St Kevin’s.

“But most importantly he is a very talented player. He’s big, he’s strong and he is a really commanding centre-back.

“I worked with him with the Ireland U21s so I know his attributes and the qualities, so I am really looking forward to working with him again.”

Grehan’s imminent arrival paved the way for fellow centre-back Cian Byrne, a fellow former St Kevin’s player who came through the academy system at Bohs, to move on loan to Galway United earlier this week.

Reynolds added: “Cian is a quality who was thrown in at the deep end for us last season, which will really stand to him.

“Cian has a great attitude and has a massive future ahead of him but after getting that first-team break, he needs to keep playing regularly now to continue with his development.

“The experience of going on loan to Galway will be of great benefit him, and will make him an even stronger player.”

Alan Reynolds says Bohemians are travelling to the Brandywell in no doubt that they are facing one of the title contenders.

The Candystripes host Bohs at the Ryan McBride Stadium after contrasting performances on their respective 2025 season openers.

Tiernan Lynch’s side travelled to the Tolka last Friday and were beaten 3-1 by defending champions Shelbourne, while Reynolds’ men claimed the Dublin Derby spoils with a 1-0 victory over Shamrock Rovers at the Aviva Stadium.

Reynolds said: “We had the result we wanted on the opening day of the season but it’s only one game.

“Derry didn’t get the result they wanted in Tolka but, again, it’s only one game. They have a new manager in Tiernan Lynch who has brought in a lot of quality, experienced players, and they will be looking to push on.

“There is no doubt in our players’ minds that we are travelling to play a team who will be title contenders this season.

“That is the expectation up there, so we have to be better again than what we were on Sunday because the Brandywell will be hopping and Derry will come at us on their own patch.

“They’ll be disappointed with their result last Friday but they were a new team playing against the champions, who are a settled group, so I expect them to be much stronger.”

While there is anticipation on Foyleside, the same is true amongst Bohs fans after the success of Sunday’s win over arch-rivals Rovers.

Much was spoken about the one-off nature of the game, playing in the national stadium in front of a league record attendance of 33,208.

But, in the run-up to the game, Reynolds was keen to remind players and fans alike that, for them, it represented just the first of 36 league games this season, and that is a mantra he has not deviated from since.

Reynolds said: “With all the coverage and media focus on the game, it’s easy and natural for supporters to get caught up in all that hype.

“But we spoke to the players before the game about how, whether we won, drew or lost, that it was still only the first game of a 36-game season.

“It’s something we spoke about with the members of the club beforehand too, and that message remains the same now.

“We enjoyed the win, and we enjoyed the day. It was a great occasion to be a part of as it showed how far the league has come in terms of public interest and how far Bohs as club has come too in terms of the support it can draw from within the club’s own community and further afield too.

“With such great support behind us, such a massive build-up, and such a great atmosphere in our national stadium, you are desperate to send your fans home happy, so we were delighted we were able to do that. But it is firmly in the past now.

“It was an important three points and it was important for us to get off to a good start. But that’s all it is – a good start. We still have a lot more work to do to get where we want to be.

“While we were delighted with the result, there were aspects of our performance that I wasn’t happy with too, so nobody will be getting carried away. We have to keep pushing ourselves and continue to strive to get better in every game.”

Team news

Jordan Flores (calf) and Alex Lacey (calf) are doubts.

Alan Reynolds says Bohemians have put the hard yards in over pre-season and are determined to start their 2025 campaign as they mean to go on.

With 30,000 tickets sold for tomorrow’s game against Shamrock Rovers at the Aviva Stadium, Bohs’ 2025 league opener promises to be a Dublin Derby like no other and is on course to smash generations-old records.

There is always a sense of anticipation ahead of a new season, but the heightened build-up the league has had in recent weeks has ratcheted that up to another level again.

Reynolds said: “The exposure that this game and the league in general is getting is fantastic. You see it with the TV deal with Virgin, and the wall-to-wall coverage over the past number of weeks.

“It’s a fantastic time to be a part of this league and after all the work our players have put in over the course of pre-season, everyone is really looking forward to getting out onto the pitch at the Aviva now and hopefully we can give our fans something to cheer about.

“We are looking at it as a fresh start for us. We have a very different squad now to what we had when I came in.

“Tomorrow is only the first of 36 league games, but we are playing our rivals and the players are hungry to start as they mean to go on.”

Reynolds has been busy strengthening his squad over the course of the closed season with the addition of Lys Mousset 10 days ago the seventh new face following the arrivals of Connor Parsons and Alex Lacey, Colm Whelan, Niall Morahan and John Mountney, and loan signing of Kian Best.

Reynolds said: “We had to be patient in bringing players in. We knew what we wanted, we chipped away at it, and we are pleased with who we’ve brought in.

“They have built a strong bond over pre-season and have worked extremely hard. Our fitness levels are good, and standards have been high.

“Those additions come on the back of the lads we brought in last summer too. We asked a lot of the players we brought in during the July window – Ross Tierney, Dawson Devoy, Leigh Kavanagh, Liam Smith and Archie Meekison – to be thrown into the team when we were scrapping at the wrong end of the table when they hadn’t had a pre-season with us.

“We limped to the end of last season but it’s a fresh start for everyone now. Those five have a pre-season under their belt, we have really strengthened with the seven new players we’ve brought in, and then you have Keith Buckley, Rob Cornwall and James McManus all back after missing last year through injury, all looking to play and all driving each other on.

“Having Bucko, Rob and James back is massive. They are Bohs through and through, they know how to win, and they are like new signings for us having them back.

“We have exciting young players coming through too – the likes of Rhys Brennan, Markus Strods, Declan Osagie and others – so I am pleased with the talent and potential we have in the squad, but we will have to be patient with them too.”

There is undoubtedly a renewed sense of excitement and anticipation among the majority of Bohemians supporters, which was certainly felt when Reynolds addressed a forum of club members during the week, and he is hoping that will lead to supporters getting behind his side from the first whistle tomorrow.

Reynolds said: “To have 15,000 or 20,000 Bohs fans behind you in a stadium like the Aviva is incredible. But the levels of support this club has is incredible no matter where we play. We see it with Dalymount being sold out for every home game, and we see it with the crowds we have behind us everywhere we go away from home.

“We want our players to embrace that, to thrive on the pressure of playing for the club, and to excite those supporters, and that is what we are striving for.

“We spoke with the members on Thursday night about how that connection is so important, and the players know it too. This is a massive club that demands high standards and hard work, and that’s what we have been striving for over the course of pre-season.

“The excitement there has been around the start of the league has been massive, so we want to build on that, draw a line under last season, and pull together to get this club back to where we all want it to be.

“Last season was a big disappointment for everyone at the club. But there has been a lot of change since, it’s a new group now who we want to build up that bond between players and fans again.”

Bohs are coming up against a Shamrock Rovers side aiming to regain the league title they lost to Shelbourne last season, and buoyed with Thursday’s Europa Conference League win away to Molde.

Reynolds added: “We didn’t need reminding of how good a side Rovers can be but they provided it on Thursday. They’re a good team with players who can really hurt you, so we have to be ready for that.”

Team news

Bohemians have a full squad to choose from.

Bohemian FC is delighted to announce the signing of French striker Lys Mousset.

The Frenchman, 28, brings a wealth of experience with him to Dalymount Park having starred for Bournemouth and Sheffield United in the Premier League having made his breakthrough in France with Le Havre.

Welcoming Mousset to Dalymount Park, manager Alan Reynolds said:

“I am over the moon to bring in a player of Lys’ quality to the club. He has been in with us the past few weeks and we have really liked what we have seen and he has really settled in well.

“The level Lys has played at speaks for itself. He is an exceptional talent and he wants to come here, enjoy his football and score goals. 

“I know that Bohs fans will take to him. There has been a lot of excitement from our fans since news broke that Lys was training with us but they will know too that we will have to be patient with him.

“He hasn’t played for a period of time, so it will take him time to get him up to the level we want him to get to fitness-wise.

“But he has a natural level of real star quality that will excite supporters and be a massive threat for us up front.”

Mousset is the seventh new arrival of the closed season so far, following yesterday’s signings of Connor Parsons and Alex Lacey, the previous additions of Colm Whelan, Niall Morahan and John Mountney, and loan signing of Kian Best.

The former France U21 international said: “It feels very good to sign, I am happy to be here.

“The manager called me, I had a good feeling after speaking with him. He told me to come here and enjoy it, and that is why I have signed.

“I am very happy here. The people at this club are very welcoming, and they have made me feel good. 

“I am very excited to get started, to get back playing football and to do my very best for this club. I think we will enjoy this year.”

Bohemian FC is delighted to announce the signing of centre-back Alex Lacey.

The 31-year-old joins with a wealth of experience in England with Luton Town, Yeovil Town, Notts County, Gillingham and Hartlepool United.

Lacey is the sixth new arrival of the closed season so far, following today’s earlier signing of Connor Parsons and the previous additions of Colm Whelan, Niall Morahan and John Mountney, and loan signing of Kian Best.

Manager Alan Reynolds said:

“Alex is a really experienced centre-back with hundreds of games under his belt at really good levels in England.

“He has been in with us in the past couple of weeks and we have been really impressed with what we have seen from him. His attitude and the help he has given the younger players in the squad has been first class. 

“He was due to go play in the United States but that fell through, which has thankfully benefited us as he is exactly what we needed – a 6ft 2in dominant and good centre-half who we have seen already will fit in really well with the group. We’re delighted to get him in.”

Lacey said: 

“I’ve really enjoyed my time with the club over the last couple of weeks. After meeting Rennie and the team, I felt right at home straight away.

“There is a really good set-up here, everyone has been really welcoming and everyone is working hard to push on this season.

“I flew in for the friendly against Cork City and I couldn’t wait to get back over here again after that.

“It’s obviously a new league for me and a new experience moving to Ireland, so I’m relishing it now.

“The results we have had in pre-season have been positive and the performances have been positive too, so there is a good foundation there to build on.

“There is good balance in the team, with plenty of experience and good young players too. I feel my experience playing in England can benefit the players around me, particularly the young players.

“I’m really excited to get started now. Having the opening game in the national stadium against your rivals will be a big occasion, and it’s something we are really looking forward to.”