Bohemians beat Dundalk to join St Pat's and Shamrock Rovers at top of table — as club issues statement in protest at fixtures schedule

LOI Premier Division Dundalk 1 - 2 Bohemians Bohemians survived a late scare as they held out for victory against Dundalk at Oriel Park to move joint top of the SSE Airtricity Premier Division table. A first-half penalty from Colm Whelan and a 68th minute strike from Ross Tierney looked to have Alan Reynolds' men cruising to victory but a Daryl Horgan penalty two minutes from the end followed by the dismissal of Cian Byrne for a last man challenge a minute later set up a nervous finish, in which the home side hit the crossbar. In the end the Gypsies held out for a huge win that sees them go second in the table, ahead of Shamrock Rovers but just behind St Patrick's Athletic on goal difference. The destiny of the title is now very much in the Phibsborough outfit's hands as they face both of their Dublin rivals in their four remaining league matches. Before that, they have a chance of making the FAI Cup final, with a semi-final at home to Waterford FC to come next Friday. Regular Position Team P G W D L GD 1 St. Patrick's Athletic 59 32 17 8 7 +27 2 Bohemians 59 32 17 8 7 +19 3 Shamrock Rovers 59 31 17 8 6 +18 4 Derry City 41 32 9 14 9 +3 5 Dundalk 41 33 10 11 12 -5 6 Shelbourne 40 32 9 13 10 -3 7 Galway United 38 32 9 11 12 -6 8 Waterford 34 32 7 13 12 -10 9 Drogheda United 34 32 8 10 14 -13 10 Sligo Rovers 23 32 5 8 19 -30 There was little between the sides before the visitors hit the front from the penalty spot on 26 minutes. Referee Damien MacGraith initially saw no problem with Aodh Dervin's challenge on Connor Parsons that saw the 25-year-old go down in the box but he did point to the spot just seconds later after Dawson Devoy went down softly following a follow-up challenge from Mayowa Animasahun. Whelan then made no mistake from the spot to give his side the lead.. The Gypsies had been on the back foot early in the second-half but doubled their lead from their first corner of the night on 67 minutes. Jordan Flores' delivery to the back post was headed back across goal by Patrick Hickey with Tierney flicking it to the net. That looked to be that until Dundalk were awarded a spot-kick which Horgan blasted home two minutes from the end after Norman Garbett had been fouled by Niall Morahan. The visitors were then reduced to 10 men with a minute remaining after Byrne took down Harry Groome, who was quickest to react to a panicked clearance from Walters. From the follow-up free-kick Burns then clipped the top of the crossbar as Bohs held out. Bohemians also issued a statement tonight, detailing their disappointment at the League's decision to refix Shamrock Rovers' crucial clash with Drogheda United to Thursday October 8, a day earlier than originally planned, insisting the club will not be fulfilling any media duties for the foreseeable future. Bohemians statement 'Bohemian FC will not be fulfilling any media interview requests tonight or for our upcoming fixtures in protest at the league's decision to bring forward Shamrock Rovers' SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division game against Drogheda United by 24 hours to Thursday October 8. 'With Bohemians taking on Waterford in an FAI Cup semi-final on Friday October 9, the league's decision gives the Shamrock Rovers squad an extra day's rest before they play Bohemians on Monday October 12 at a critical juncture of the season. 'The date for the Shamrock Rovers v Bohemians game was agreed in good faith between both clubs on the basis that both teams had the same recovery time, already a tight window of two days' rest. 'With Bohemians taking on Waterford in an FAI Cup semi-final on Friday October 9, the league's decision gives the Shamrock Rovers squad an extra day's rest before they play Bohemians on Monday October 12 at a critical juncture of the season. 'The date for the Shamrock Rovers v Bohemians game was agreed in good faith between both clubs on the basis that both teams had the same recovery time, already a tight window of two days' rest. 'Bohemian FC places a very high value on the coverage given to our league by various media outlets and is grateful for the long-standing commitment of the many journalists who pride themselves on that coverage. 'However, while the league appears not to value a level playing field between clubs and fails to adequately consult with all affected parties, we feel we must regrettably take what we feel is a reasonable course of protest at those failings.'