THERE WAS NO trophy presentation – at the request of Stephen Bradley – so the Shamrock Rovers manager instigated a singsong instead.

When a sixth League of Ireland title was won, thousands of supporters raced onto the pitch to savour a moment that would have felt even sweeter for coming at the expense of their greatest rivals, Bohemians.

The layout of Tallaght Stadium made this impromptu celebration almost perfect. Fans gathered around the tunnel area, Bradley and his players were among them for some of the madness before being brought up steps into the stand to have a more elevated view.

Fittingly, it was like they were on a perch.

They belted out the song Komodo - a Shelbourne anthem – in honour of their Dublin rivals doing them a favour by beating Bohs. They teased the Gypsies with their own version of The Auld Triangle and then began the usual

We are the champions

Champions again ole, ole

Campeones, campeones, ole, ole, ole

And then there was a moment of hush. The songs stopped, the playlist came to a standstill.

Amid a sea of bodies there was a divine parting instigated by Bradley. He shouted from the steps below up to the stadium announcer in charge of the music.

“Buttercup! Put Buttercup on!,” Bradley roared.

The Dubliner really has come to put his stamp on every facet of this club in the decade he has been in charge. Ten years that have brought a new kind of glory, a different level of expectation and belief in what is possible.

Stephen Bradley raises six fingers to signify his titles. Nick Elliott / INPHO Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO

So, of course they sang. And, of course, it was Build Me Up Buttercup.

There was an encore, too, and by the time Bradley was back in the dressing room celebrating with his players the sounds were of car horns beeping as people drifted away into the night.

“Bunch of animals in there, animals. I don’t know what we’re raising in there,” Bradley said of those celebrations in the inner sanctum.

“You’d think they’d won the league.”

He was in his element, delivering a sharp line in ambition for a future he has no plans to step away from.

“We’re on now to do another four in a row, that’s the aim. I believe there’s more doubles in this group, I believe there’s better in Europe. We all believe that and that will be the aim.”

Nick Elliott / INPHO Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO

Rewind to the summer and the flight home to Dublin after being beaten in the Uefa Conference League play-off by KuPS after starting in the Champions League qualifiers. Bradley had his laptop open going over the game when he was approached by the club’s new chief executive, Robbie Hedderman. He asked for a moment to speak with the head coach and laid it out that this would turn out to be the best thing for Bradley and the club in the long term.

“I felt like telling him to fuck off,” the manager said of the pep talk.

But once Hedderman explained his reasons Bradley came around. “He said don’t worry about anything else, this is the best thing, you just need a break, everyone needs a reset we need a break.

“The players have been gone three years non-stop, you’ve been gone three years, your staff have, it’s the best thing to happen. The fans need to understand that we don’t just arrive in group stages, people around Irish football need to understand we don’t just arrive there.

“He said this is the best thing that’s ever happened, he said we’ll be better and stronger for this next year, the break will refresh us all we’ll come back hungrier, sharper focused and I thought it was brilliant from him at that moment.”

John McGovern (centre) with his teammates in the dressing room. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO

Bradley said “it’s not our fault” that no rival has been able to stop them winning six of the last seven titles and that like the dominant Dublin GAA team under Jim Gavin they should be celebrated for their consistency.

“We shouldn’t be looking to take them down, when Dublin won and many of the people are talking about do we split Dublin [in two] instead of talking about how does everyone get there. It’s the exact same with us.

 “If you’re trying to win a league, you have to win it, you have to take it, nothing’s given and people that haven’t been through it don’t understand it.

“You can talk and you beat us and think ‘oh we’re there’, it’s more than that. You have to really grab it, you have to go and take it, it’s something that you have to earn. You have to understand the feel, the smell and these players have it they understand it.

“To win a league, take it, go grab it and then feel like you don’t have it any more and fight again. To have that in your stomach, to have that in you is special. Forget quality, forget ability, you need that, you need to go to a dark place, you need to have that.”

Rovers fans on the pitch. Nick Elliott / INPHO Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO

That dark place can be draining, and Bradley admits that he has been looking forward to the end of this season for some time. He says he wants to get away “to drink and get fat” and switch off from an obsession that has delivered unprecedented success.

“But I’m tired. I need a break… We’ll be a different team next year back to front, just run and bang people,” he joked.

“Like I said, I’m 41, I’m not 61. I’m not thinking I’m finishing, I’m easing out. I’m a young manager. I’ve been doing it for a long time but I’m a young manager. My challenge for me and the staff is, how do we get better? How do we stay sharp? How do we give the players the same message with a different twist and a different message to keep it fresh, so they are digesting it in the right way?

“We’ve done one four-in-a-row with a double, we are on course to do another one now. That’s the aim.”