Gypsy kings

Shelbourne 0 Bohemians 1

"It was the first headed goal I've ever scored in the league," said a star-struck Ryan afterwards, his hair matted by the sweat of honest endeavour.

"People said he was too light to make it," said emotional Bohs boss Stephen Kenny in between sucking big gulps of air to help keep the tears at bay, "they said he was too small to make an impact with a big club like ours. But he showed there is no substitute for skill."

The champagne flowed and the league officers showed a welcome sense of occasion by producing the League trophy on the day that mattered. The fans sang and danced with glee, the players frolicked with delight. For Bohs it was heaven on earth.

How could it not be? They travelled to the ground of their nearest rivals and the only ones left who could deny them the trophy. They matched them in a heavyweight contest that was frantic and fair. They finally illustrated their superiority, however marginal, with Ryan's golden goal in the 89th minute.

"At last I've won a trophy," said the modest Kenny, his eyes brimming with pride, "we've been the best team this season, that is undisputed. But best teams don't always win.

"It's fantastic. We've really played well this season, particularly early on, but it was in the balance up until that last minute goal. I'm delighted for a fantastic group of players and a great backroom team.

"This was only a fourth league win in 66 years for Bohs and it is one that we'll enjoy. And we can only go on and get stronger from here, we really can.

"Last season we won the Cup and lost the league but the best job I did last year was to sign all our best players on three-year contracts so we are not going to lose anybody and we can work now to get to the next level. We really want to make progress in Europe and we've got the players to do that."

Bohs showed all their good qualities in a match that produced excellent football despite the many influences that militated against a good game. The importance of the occasion, the wickedly cold wind that blew strongly down the length of the pitch, the fierce intensity of the contest were all considerations impacting negatively on the quality of the football. Both teams succeeded in making light of theseissues with totally committed performances that stemmed from their determination to attack and seek goals at every opportunity.

A draw would have been a good result for Bohs but, to both teams' credit, they were not prepared to compromise at any stage.

There were not too many scoring chances for both teams defended brilliantly. The best attempt until Ryan's late strike was a headed effort from Ollie Cahill in the 60th minute. He jumped above Damien Lynch to reach a cross from Owen Heary for a firm header that Ashley Bayes pushed away with difficulty.

Bohs showed they were marginally the better team. Their defence, in which Derek Coughlan and Colin Hawkins were superb, was very impressive. But Shels were not prepared to yield and it looked a certain draw until that fateful 89th minute.

Then Ryan cut in from the right before whipping a low ball across the penalty area that was wasted because Mark Rutherford and Gary O'Neill were too near to goalkeeper Steve Williams. The ball flew behind them but was rescued by Rutherford who then chipped it back and Ryan ducked low to head the goal that settled an excellent contest.

"It's ended on a great note for us," said striker Paul Keegan, who covered more ground than any other player on the pitch. "We've suffered only two defeats all year and that shows how consistent we've been. What a bunch of lads! And what a team! What a manager and staff!

"We had a bit of a bad one last year but to win two leagues in three years, well you can't ask for much more than that," said the outstanding Kevin Hunt, who must have forgotten in the excitement they won the Cup last season. "We've worked very hard for this," he added.

"I'm delighted to have won a league medal at last," said Derek Coughlan, who reserved a career-best performance for the big day, "it's a great feeling and particularly after such a good game I don't know what it looked like from the sidelines but it was a great game to play in.

"This is my seventh season in the league and after coming so close so often with Cork it is a big relief to get my hands on the trophy at last. Perhaps it is a bit of a pity that I didn't win with the Cork team we had in 1998/'99, but circumstances dictated that I move on at the start of the season and what better place to move to than Bohemians.

"I love playing with Bohs, they are a great bunch of lads and the whole set-up is so professional I think a lot of clubs around Ireland should look at the way they do their business and take a leaf out of their book.

"It was set up really for a memorable finish, it was bigger than a cup final, and it was just perfect to win it here."

And the hero of the day? "I don't think I've ever felt this good in my life," said Ryan, who served his apprenticeship with Limerick and Galway before joining Bohs last season. "To score the winning goal was something else.

"To win the league is brilliant and to produce the most important goal just capped a great performance by the team. The pace of the game was incredible and I've worked very hard all season and it's paid off now. What could be better ?"

SHELBOURNE (4-4-2): Williams; Heary, Doherty (Sheridan 90), Gannon, Crawley; R. Baker, Crawford, D. Byrne, Cahill; Hoolahan (Roberts 78), Geoghegan (Beavers 70).

BOHEMIANS (4-4-2): Bayes; Lynch, Coughlan, Hawkins, Webb; Ryan, Hunt, Caffrey, Rutherford; O'Neill, Keegan.

Referee: P. McKeon (Dublin).