Ex-Bohemians Craig Sexton, Corey Davidson and Robbie Gaul are among five players on standby.

Goalkeepers: Michael Schlingermann (IT Carlow/Drogheda United), Craig Sexton (IT Carlow/Athlone Town). Defenders: Dylan Mernagh (Waterford IT/Waterford Utd), James Scallan (IT Carlow/Arklow Town), Jamie Carr (IT Carlow/Wexford Youths), Niall Cooney (DIT/Crumlin Utd), Reece McEnteer (O’Fiaich College, Dundalk/Glebe North). Midfielders: Barry O’Mahony (IT Carlow/Mervue Utd), Brian Nolan (Waterford IT/Wexford Youths), Carl Forsyth (Sallynogin College/Mount Merrion FC), Darren Forsyth (Rathmines College/Mount Merrion FC),Cillian Morrison (UCD/UCD), Stephen Traynor (DCU/Bohemians), Tom King (GMIT Galway/Mervue Utd), Paul Malone (DIT/Bray Wanderers), Ray Foy (IT Carlow/Derry City), Andrew Mulligan (IT Carlow/Bohemians). Forwards: Garbhan Coughlan (University of Limerick/Athlone Town), Johnny Addis (University of Ulster Jordanstown/Carrick Rangers), Josh O’Shea (UCC/UCC). Standby players: Colin Scanlan (Limerick IT/Fairview Rangers),Corey Davidson (Pearse College, Crumlin/Carrick Rangers), Robbie Gaul (DCU/Salthill Devon), Samir Belhout (UCD/UCD), Tristan Dent (UCD/UCD). Manager: Danny Crowley (Colaiste Ide Dublin), Assistant Manager: Paul O’Reilly (IT Carlow), Performance Analyst: Gary Sweeney (IT Carlow), Equipment Officer: Paul Walsh (Griffith College Dublin).

Picture credit: Eddie Lennon (www.eddielennonsportingimages.com)

“If you get the right draws and right results you find yourself all of a sudden in a semi-final. It’s a very important game from the club’s perspective,” he added.

Looking back to Friday’s Dublin derby, Callaghan believes a draw was the least his side deserved having proved more than a match for their more illustrious opponents for large periods of the game.

Callaghan added:  “It’s chalk and cheese in terms of the personnel at the moment. We put it up to them on Friday and we fully deserved our point if not the three.

“The group that we work with, every day in training they work their socks off. Their attitude for the cause has been absolutely superb all season.

“We’ve had some tough games and we’re still a work in progress. I keep telling people I’m not trying to build a team, I’m trying to build a club and you can’t build a club overnight.

“It takes a bit of time to develop those young kids. But they’re growing in stature. Lukey Byrne I thought was absolutely brilliant on Friday alongside Dave Mulcahy, who got man of the match. You could have given it to five or six of our lads.

“Michael Scott came on for his debut. You could see the difference with what Rovers were bringing off the bench.”

With a congested fixture list, Callaghan expects “to rotate one or two players”  and his squad is boosted by the return of defender Roberto Lyons and striker Chris Lyons, who both missed Friday’s game through suspension.

But Keith Buckley – one of the star performers in Tallaght – misses out as he serves the first of a two-match ban having been sent off in last week’s 1-0 defeat against UCD.

NOTE: Members can attend this game for the reduced price of €5.

Despite suspensions for Chris Lyons and Roberto Lopes and an injury to Owen Heary, Bohs dominated in midfield areas, restricted the Hoops to long-range efforts, and looked extremely dangerous on the counter attack. Andy Mulligan was a constant threat, Dave Scully held the ball up brilliantly, and Dave Mulcahy was a rock at centre back. Only a dreadfully poor refereeing performance from Neil Doyle denied Bohs what would have been a deserved 3-points.

The visitors had the first chance after a fine break down the left. The returning Ciaran Nangle cut the ball back to Mulligan whose whipped cross was inches from Scully’s head. Bohs continued to control the game and after a scrambled corner, Dave Mulcahy nodded to Derek Pender who flashed a left-footed volley just wide of the post.  The excellent Mulcahy released Mulligan again down the left on 25 minutes, and the Carlow man was caught in two minds whether to cross or shoot. In the end he did neither, and his effort didn’t trouble Barry Murphy in the Rovers goal.

Rovers’ only first half chance came predictably from a set piece. Billy Dennehy’s whipped corner found the head of Ciaran Kilduff. His header from six yards had goal written all over it, but Dean Delany somehow managed to claw it onto the crossbar and over. The Bohs net minder has come in for a fair amount of criticism this season, but showed here why he’s been playing at the top level in the country for so long.

Rovers started to come into the game just before half time, and the whistle probably came at a good time for Aaron Callaghan’s men. After regrouping at the break, Bohs took control of the second half. The midfield trio of Ryan McEvoy, Keith Buckley and Shane Murray were bossing the game, finding spaces in between the lethargic Rovers duo of Finn and Robinson. Ten minutes into the second half, Buckley released Mulligan – who haunted Conor McCormack all night. Mulligan’s cutback found Scully, but the forward’s shot was rather weak and David Elebert blocked on the line.

Bohs were constantly creating half-chances, with long range efforts from Buckley and Scully flashing wide of Barry Murphy’s goal. At the other end it was a similar story. Ronan Finn had Rovers’ best long ranger, but Dean Delany didn’t have to make any saves in the second period.

A theme running throughout this pulsating Derby was the truly awful refereeing performance from Neil Doyle. A host of 50-50 calls went the wrong way for both sides, players were fooling him with exaggerated falls, and he dished out amazing yellow cards to Mulcahy and Scully. The icing on the cake came in the 80th minute when he gave Rovers a penalty with a decision that would have almost been comical if it wasn’t so important. Sean O’Connor’s cross fell to Andy Mulligan who tried to hook the ball over his head. Instead, he clumsily kicked it off his own face – but Doyle thought otherwise and pointed to the spot. TV replays clearly showed the ball striking Mulligan in the mouth – he even had a bloody lip to show for it! Ronan Finn sent Delany the wrong way and it looked like the Hoops had stolen the points. Doyle had even managed to miss a shocking two-footed lunge from Shane Robinson on Dave Scully just a couple of minutes before that. Many managers and pundits have commented on the standard of refereeing in the league so far this year, and this was another exhibition of poor decision making.

Luckily for Bohs, sweet Karma was smiling down as the sun set over the Wicklow horizon. With two minutes of injury time played, a long throw from Luke Byrne was only partially cleared to Ryan McEvoy in the box. Time stood still as he kept his head, kept the shot low, and sent the travelling support into a delirious frenzy. It may have taken a deflection, but tell that to the Bohs fans who had backed the team all night in the ground where they have suffered so much heartbreak. They could easily be forgiven for the pitch invasion that followed, it was a classic moment in another classic game between these two great rivals.

Shamrock Rovers: Barry Murphy; Conor McCormack, Derek Foran (Ken Oman 68), Jason McGuinness, David Elebert; Gary McCabe (Karl Sheppard 79), Ronan Finn, Shane Robinson, Billy Dennehy (Sean O’Connor 59); Thomas Stewart, Ciaran Kilduff. Subs not used: Richard Brush, Alan Kehoe, Stephen Rice, James Chambers.

Bohemians: Dean Delany; Derek Pender, Dave Mulcahy, Luke Byrne, Ciaran Nangle (Michael Scott 87); Kevin Devaney (Michael Barker 67), Ryan McEvoy, Keith Buckley, Andy Mulligan; Shane Murray (Karl Moore 67); Dave Scully. Subs not used: Greg Murray, Kevin O’Leary, Shane Fitzgerald, Dwayne Wilson.

Bohs Man of the Match: Dave Mulcahy

“I thought we were the better side against Cork for most of the match. Tommy Dunne [Cork City manager] said to me after the match they had got out of jail.

“Against UCD one or two contentious decisions swung the match. Those games turned on slight errors.”

Motivating the players has not been an issue but a derby match against Shamrock Rovers represents a particular challenge. “The magnitude of the game speaks for itself, given the past encounters between the sides. But I don’t do the history side of things. Every game is taken on its merits,” said Callaghan.

“Shamrock Rovers have shown what they can achieve when they’re on form. If we’re not 100 per cent on the night it’s going to be very difficult.”

Bohemians’ 1-0 win in Tallaght last September marked 19-year-old Greg Murray’s second league appearance in goal for Bohemians and, on Friday, he is likely to make his first league start this season. Dean Delany’s groin injury will probably rule him out after 13 successive league starts.

This is one of several enforced changes to the Bohemian line-up, as striker Chris Lyons and defender Roberto Lopes, both of them central to the team’s endeavours this season, are suspended.

The 3-5-2 formation used in recent games is likely to be set aside and Callaghan will consider the claims of Dwayne Wilson, Kevin Devaney and Dave Scully to start up-front or in a position just off the furthest forward.

Lopes was rested against Cork City after starting all 12 league games in the season up to that. “I knew the suspension was coming and the rest won’t do him any harm,” said his manager.

Looking forward to next Monday’s EA Sports Cup match at home to Bray Wanderers, Callaghan insisted that “the plan for the season was to win a trophy and this is a trophy we could win”.

“If you get the right draws and right results you find yourself all of a sudden in a semi-final. It’s a very important game from the club’s perspective,” he added.

The manager expects “to rotate one or two players” but is hoping that there are no injuries coming out of Friday’s match that require more changes than that.

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After a run of games with a 3-5-2 formation, Bohs switched to an orthodox 4-4-2 with Dave Scully returning to partner Chris Lyons up front. Derek Pender looked much more comfortable at right back rather than right wing back, and his pinpoint cross set up the first chance of the game. Unfortunately for Bohs, Ryan McEvoy just couldn’t quite get enough on his header.

A first half of few chances exploded into life with 9 minutes to go. Good work from Andy Mulligan down the left forced a Bohs corner, which was whipped in by Stephen Traynor. With the ball about to reach Owen Heary at the back post, Colin Healy stretched out a leg but only managed to divert the ball into his own net.

Aaron Callaghan will be extremely frustrated not to hang onto the lead at least until half time. Denis Behan and Gearoid Morrissey played a simple one-two on the edge of the Bohs box before Morrissey skipped past Heary. The Bohs captain’s outstretched leg clearly caught the Cork forward, and referee Paul Tuite had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Denis Behan sent Dean Delany the wrong way in front of the disappointingly small away contingent in the Des Kelly Stand.

Bohs clearly stepped up their game in the second half, and should really have taken the lead on more than one occasion. Dave Scully had three chances in close succession. The first saw him caught for pace by Kalen Spillane when pretty much through on goal. His second chance came when his header was tipped around the post by Mark McNulty, while his third chance was a header that was wonderfully blocked by John Dunleavy.

A large contingent of the Bohs fans have been calling for Greg Murray to be given his chance in goal, and the Palmerstown man did make his season debut when Delany was forced off with what looked like a muscle strain on the hour mark. The sub keeper could do nothing as Cork got their winner totally against the run of play. Karl Moore, who had a wretched evening, was caught in possession down the Bohs right. Gearoid Morrissey raced away down the left and pulled it back for his namesake Danny, who blasted it in from six yards.

Bohs huffed and puffed for the final 10 minutes, and could have snatched an equaliser when Cork keeper McNulty miscontrolled and allowed Mulligan to square it. Kalen Spillane just got there ahead of the sluggish Chris Lyons and Bohs hopes of a point were snuffed out. With two difficult games against Shamrock Rovers and St Pats to come, things could get squeaky for Bohs before the mid-season break in June.

Bohemians: Dean Delany (Greg Murray, 59), Owen Heary, Derek Pender, Luke Byrne, Dave Mulcahy, Ryan McEvoy, Stephen Traynor (Michael Barker, 81), Andy Mulligan, Karl Moore (Kevin Devaney, 81), Dave Scully, Chris Lyons. Subs not used: Roberto Lopes, Darragh Reynor, Dwayne Wilson, Kevin O’Leary.

Cork City: Mark McNulty, Danny Murphy, Kalen Spillane, Neal Horgan, John Dunleavy (Gary Buckley, 87), Colin Healy, Shane Duggan, Gearóid Morrissey, Daryl Horgan (Ian Turner, 65), Danny Morrissey, Denis Behan (Daryl Kavanagh, 74). Subs not used: Kevin Burns, Ian Turner, Daryl Kavanagh, Adam Rundle, Danny Furlong, Stephen Kenny, Garry Buckley.