WHEN RORY GAFFNEY spoke to The 42 before the start of this Premier Division season, he stated a simple truth about the nature of team spirit, and the inner workings of the Shamrock Rovers dressing room.
When you win, it’s much easier to get on with the fella sitting next to you.
Results always dictate the mood.
When things don’t go to plan and doubts from the outside threaten to penetrate, that is when a weak structure will crumble.
For Rovers, the strength of those bonds built up over the course of winning three successive league titles, lifting the FAI Cup in 2019, and qualifying for the group stages of the Europa Conference League last term were tested early on in this campaign.
The Hoops, it seemed, had hit a wall in their quest for the four-in-a-row.
A combination of silly red cards, conceding sillier goals, and losing at home to last season’s runners-up, Derry City, suggested the champions would be braced for a season of struggle.
Three wins on the spin – scoring nine times and conceding none – have allayed any fears of a dramatic decline, but with Bohemians still seven points clear at the top after securing a brilliant victory away to Derry City last night, Stephen Bradley’s side must now maintain this standard.
“One of the things he really tells us is to trust what we do. Trust how we play and the outcome will come from it. He repeats that a lot and it’s powerful,” Neil Farrugia said of Bradley’s influence in the aftermath of Friday’s comfortable 2-0 win at Dalymount Park.
“It’s huge, especially at the start of the season when we’re drawing games, we lost against Derry, we’re coming off the pitch and thought we had played alright.
“The gaffer is keeping us calm, reminding us all the time to trust each other and it’s really powerful because it keeps us confident going into the next game.”
That came against UCD last night, the kind of comfortable non-event victory which they could have only have dreamed of in February and early March.
Maximum points from their last three games does not mean those early anxieties can be completely brushed over, but another win in a Dublin derby when Shelbourne come to Tallaght Stadium on Friday will only serve to reinforce the growing feeling of positivity.
It’s one which Declan Devine has been able to tap into and maintain during the early days of his Bohs reign.
That 1-0 victory in the Brandywell last night was crucial not just because it keeps them clear at the top of the table, and extinguishes any lingering sorrow from the defeat to Rovers on Friday, but it will help those new relationships to grow even quicker, and stronger, among a squad that was never have been expected to be in this position before a ball was kicked in 2023.
“Let’s be honest, we’ve dug it out. We’ve had some good moments in the game. We had to really dig in. We had a lot of injuries coming in and the players responded,” Devine said last night.
“They were fantastic, all the ugly stuff. It’s a massive three points for us but more importantly it’s a big response to having lost on Friday night.
“The most pleasing aspect for us is that I’ve consistently said that we have a really good squad. We made four or five changes and every one of them were fantastic. The character, desire and work rate was something really special.”
A start to a season like this is invaluable for a squad that had some dramatic changes over the winter and seen a new manager walk in the door.
Harsher examinations of their togetherness will come as the months go on, but there can be no doubting the early influence of Devine on the club.
Like his predecessor Keith Long before him, he had club stalwarts such as Tony O’Connor, Turlogh O’Connor and Tony O’Connell address the players in pre-season about the history and structure of the club.
It was laid out how the vast majority of fans who pack the Jodi Stand every other Friday are all part owners. An obvious point of note that still needs reinforcing, the importance of which should not be diminished.
One of the undoubted successes of Bohs in recent years is forging a clear sense of identity. Devine has tapped into that.
Keith Buckley has returned, Paddy Kirk too, while goalkeeper James Talbot and coach Derek Pender are vital components.
It is easy to maintain now, when things are flying and everyone is smiling, but as Derry are finding out after winning just once in their last five, it is a different matter entirely when the chips are down and questions are being asked.
Rovers are showing that they are capable of finding their way through the haze.
That is one of the main doubts that linger over the two sides now most likely to challenge for their crown.
