Rory Gaffney fired champions Shamrock Rovers back on top after the Hoops snatched the capital’s bragging rights for now.
But the Gypsies were crying foul when strong penalty appeals were waved away before-half time, leaving boss Keith Long incensed and utterly gobsmacked.
Rovers’ two away defeats in four games before this may have offered the chasing pack hope that they won’t get it all their own way this season.
But while they maintained their 100% home record courtesy of Gaffney’s first-half strike, they shaded rather than dominated their arch rivals.
Bohs won three of the five meetings last season, but without the suspended Promise Omochere they lacked the teeth in attack to make inroads against an overworked Hoops defence, but not Alan Mannus who had it easy.
The biggest talking point centred on that penalty appeal late in the first-half when Lee Grace bundled Kris Twardek to the ground.
Referee Rob Hennessey wasn’t buying it and Long couldn’t believe his eyes. It might have been a lifeline, but his side were always chasing.
And they were hanging on at the death when Rovers subs Aaron Greene and Danny Mandroiu went close with the insurance goal.
Rovers were the more convincing side in attack throughout the first-half and Gaffney caused all sorts of bother for centre-backs Ciaran Kelly and Grant Horton.
And he wasn’t far away early on when out-muscling Kelly to reach a Hoare ball to put the frighteners up James Talbot.
Graham Burke, back in the starting team for Mandroiu following the latter’s mini Richmond Park strop, was better placed and let rip at Gaffney afterwards.
Burke was a thorn in Bohs’ side throughout his 70-minute outing. And while he might lack that killer yard of pace, he more than makes up for it with speed of thought.
Gaffney then flashed a shot across the face of goal from an impossible angle before finally getting his rewards in the 25th minute.
Burke and Ronan Finn were central to a sweeping move down the right that ended up in the box.
Intricate passing had Bohs in a spin and when the ball clipped the heels of a visiting defender, it sat up perfectly for Gaffney to drill home.
Bohs hadn’t offered a great deal in attack up to that point yet the Hoops rearguard never had it easy.
Pico Lopes may have played a stray ball or two out of defence but he was commanding in the tackle, while Sean Hoare and Grace mopped up around him.
And Bohs could have pulled level when Twardek’s deep cross was headed back across goal by Stephen Mallon, but Ali Coote and Ryan Cassidy lacked a killer instinct close in.
And Rovers ought to have punished that hesitancy with a second ten minutes before the break, but were brilliantly thwarted by Talbot.
Dylan Watts’ deflected shot bounced up for Gaffney but Tallbot tipped his header onto the post.
But Bohs were crying foul four minutes before the break when Hennessy dismissed penalty appeals after Twardek went down under Grace’s challenge.
The Rovers defender bundled the Canadian international over, having collected Dawson Devoy’s killer pass, and fairly so according to Hennessy.
Long blew a gasket, so too did his players but they lived in hope that the incident could fuel a response and a second-half comeback.
While Rovers were the better side, they fell shy of dominating and Devoy forced Mannus into a full stretch save from outside the box on the hour.
Suddenly, this was better from Bohs, who then shaved the crossbar from Mallon. But Byrne retaliated tit-for-tat for Rovers with a shot that had Talbot scrambling.
To see it over the line, Rovers needed a jolt and got it off the bench with Greene, Barry Cotter, Mandroiu and, later, Richie Towell all adding bite and a sense of urgency.
Cotter’s block to deny Twardek with 15 minutes to go was a significant moment, but the pendulum swung again when Greene and Mandroiu could have sealed it late on.
SHAMROCK ROVERS: Mannus; Hoare, Lopes, Grace; Finn (Cotter 70), Watts, O’Neill, Lyons; Byrne (Towell 77), Burke (Mandroiu 70(; Gaffney (Greene 67).
BOHEMIANS: Talbot; Feely, Horton, Kelly, Wilson; Devoy, Flores (Doherty 77); Twardek, Coote, Mallon (Mullins 82); Cassidy (Burt 64).
Referee: R Hennessy
