‘It has been a while since we won here’ – Keith Long feeling relieved after Bohs bring winless home run to an end

Bohemians manager Keith Long was a relieved man after his side finally registered a first home success for 2021 with a 4-0 win over Finn Harps.

Thanks to a brace of Ali Coote goals – as well as one each from Ross Tierney and Keith Buckley – the Gypsies recorded a comprehensive triumph over Finn Harps in Dalymount Park. Long’s charges had previously gone four Premier Division games without a victory at the Phibsborough venue.

“It has been a while since we won here. It was important that we got the second round of games off to a positive start. We got ahead in the game early and controlled the tempo of the game,” Long remarked.

“We were aggressive, we played on the front foot. I think it’s important that when you get ahead you stay ahead. We were able to reinforce that.”

Following a period of sustained pressure, Tierney broke the deadlock on 14 minutes with a neat finish off a Liam Burt cross.

This raised the confidence levels of Bohs and Coote subsequently grabbed his first goal for the club with a fine finish at the end of a memorable run. In the final minute of the opening half, the Scottish midfielder doubled his tally in clinical fashion to give Bohs a commanding 3-0 interval cushion.

While Harps (who stay two places ahead of Bohs in fourth) improved on the resumption, the Gypsies remained in firm control.

A powerful Tierney effort rebounded off the crossbar, before skipper Buckley rounded off an impressive performance with a fourth deep into second-half stoppage-time.

BOHEMIANS – Talbot; Feely, Cornwall, Finnerty, Breslin; Buckley, Devoy; Coote (Omochere 80), Tierney (Mahon 87), Burt (Ward 87); Kelly.

FINN HARPS – McGinley; Webster, Sadiki, Folan (Dunleavy h-t); O’Sullivan, Seymore, Coyle (Boyle h-t), Russell; B McNamee (Timlin 70); Owolabi (Boyd h-t (T McNamee 75)), Foley.

REF – R Matthews (Westmeath).