By Kenneth Fox
Shamrock Rovers have beaten their closest rivals Bohemians 1-0 at Tallaght stadium to go five points clear at the top of SSE Airtricity League Premier Division.
In typical fashion, the Dublin derby was a tight and cagey affair as both teams fought for every inch.
Despite this, the only goal of the game came early on as Rovers left back Danny Laferty scored after four minutes when he tapped the ball in after the Bohs keeper saved a cross from Graham Burke.
There were big calls from the Bohemians players for a penalty after 63 minutes when one of their players went down in the box.
The referee did not think there was enough in it to award the penalty.
The home team withstood a late onslaught from the visitors, but Rovers were able to hang on to win 1-0.
The win means Rovers have effectively brought the curtain down on any title race and it would be very difficult to see the Hoops being caught, especially with Dundalk’s poor run of results since the league resumed.
The man of the match of today’s Dublin derby was Rovers defender Roberto Lopes.
Next up, Shelbourne welcome Cork City to Tolka Park with kick off in an hour’s time
.