BOHEMIANS FORWARD KEITH Ward admitted he made slightly more out of the tackle that led to Aaron Greene’s red card in the first-half of last night’s Dublin Derby than he should have.
Rovers lost 1-0 to their rivals at Dalymount Park, having played from the 29th minute on with ten men when Greene was given a straight red for a robust challenge on Ward in front of the Bohemians’ bench.
Ward received treatment after the tackle but was okay to continue, ultimately winning the second-half penalty which led to Dinny Corcoran scoring the game’s only goal.
“It was a 50-50″ Ward told The42 after the game.
“He’s caught me, I’ve made more out of it than I probably should have, but that’s football.
“It is what it is. It hapened in front of our dug-out and they were out screaming, so maybe you can affect things because it is hard for them [referees] as it is a split-second decision.
“But, look, I don’t make the decision. I don’t know if it is a red, but it is what it is.”
Bohs’ manager Keith Long believed referee Rob Harvey made the right call.
“I thought it was a reckless challenge. The referee and fourth official were in close proximity along with the linesman, and I thought they got the decision correct.”
Rovers’ manager Stephen Bradley, however, disagreed.
The result maintains Bohs’ remarkable recent record against their Dublin rivals, against whom they are unbeaten since May 2017.
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“I don’t think I ever will” laughs Ward when asked by The42 if he is getting tired of beating Rovers.
“Ah it is great for the fans. They are not the greatest games to play in sometimes, football-wise, but when you win and get to go over to your fans at the end, it’s a bit special.
“I’m just buzzing to pick another three points. And when you the see the crowds there tonight; even the crowd we brought to Belfield on Friday night, you just want to give them a little bit back.”
Keith Ward applauds the Bohs' supporters after the game. Ryan Byrne / INPHO
Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO
Ward has spent the season thus far on the left of Bohs’ 4-2-3-1 system, being more accustomed to playing centrally. Long is happy with Ward’s reinvention.
“He is a clever player, a technician.
“When he is on song and in his full stride, particularly with the Jodi in full voice behind him, he gets excited by that. He was very effective for us tonight.
“He is very creative; that type of player always looking to create and while sometimes he frustrates, creative players do that.
“You have to allow these players the freedom to express themselves.
“As long as he puts in the shift we expect of him, he knows his responsibilities and he understands how we want to play.
”He understands how we want to play and for the good of the team he has to play in that position just for now, and he has done really well.”
Ward, for his part, is happy to stick with his left-sided berth.
“There’s a lot more running out on the left! But since I’ve come here I’ve had a few stints on the left. Ive played in the hole maybe 90% of the time, but we have a great player in Danny Mandriou who can kick on and have a great career, and you want to play with good players.
“So if Danny comes in and I move to the left I don’t mind…as long as Darragh [Leahy] is playing left-back and he’s doing all that running I don’t mind!”
Bohs’ are top of the league, the only side in the Premier Division with a 100% record after three games. Long says the club are remaining grounded, although says that Bohs won’t put any “limits” on their season, either.
It is an impressive start for a side hit with major upheaval during the off-season, which led to the introduction of ten new faces and the loss of some experienced players.
“It is a consistent rebuild every year”, says Long.
“But we tried really hard in pre-season and we had a lot of really good players that were already here: Derek Pender, Keith Buckley, Dinny Corcoran, Keith Ward, Rob Cornwall.
“These are the new leaders that we need to create this year as we lost a lot of leadership last year, with Ian Morris and Shane Supple going in particular.
“It’s not easy, it is very, very difficult to rebuild consistently, but we encourage the players to believe, to express themselves, and there are a lot of worse things to be doing.
“We want them to enjoy themselves and get the most out of their careers when they are with us, in our care.”
Ward seems to be among them.
“We just don’t have the budget to offer players to keep them. You can’t give out to players for leaving for more money, it is a short career.
“As long as Keith and Trevor [Croly] are here I’m happy here. Players will always come and go but when you see the buzz around the ground tonight, it is a good place to be.”
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'He’s caught me, I’ve made more out of it than I probably should have, but that’s football'
BOHEMIANS FORWARD KEITH Ward admitted he made slightly more out of the tackle that led to Aaron Greene’s red card in the first-half of last night’s Dublin Derby than he should have.
Rovers lost 1-0 to their rivals at Dalymount Park, having played from the 29th minute on with ten men when Greene was given a straight red for a robust challenge on Ward in front of the Bohemians’ bench.
Ward received treatment after the tackle but was okay to continue, ultimately winning the second-half penalty which led to Dinny Corcoran scoring the game’s only goal.
“It was a 50-50″ Ward told The42 after the game.
“He’s caught me, I’ve made more out of it than I probably should have, but that’s football.
“It is what it is. It hapened in front of our dug-out and they were out screaming, so maybe you can affect things because it is hard for them [referees] as it is a split-second decision.
“But, look, I don’t make the decision. I don’t know if it is a red, but it is what it is.”
Bohs’ manager Keith Long believed referee Rob Harvey made the right call.
“I thought it was a reckless challenge. The referee and fourth official were in close proximity along with the linesman, and I thought they got the decision correct.”
Rovers’ manager Stephen Bradley, however, disagreed.
The result maintains Bohs’ remarkable recent record against their Dublin rivals, against whom they are unbeaten since May 2017.
“I don’t think I ever will” laughs Ward when asked by The42 if he is getting tired of beating Rovers.
“Ah it is great for the fans. They are not the greatest games to play in sometimes, football-wise, but when you win and get to go over to your fans at the end, it’s a bit special.
“I’m just buzzing to pick another three points. And when you the see the crowds there tonight; even the crowd we brought to Belfield on Friday night, you just want to give them a little bit back.”
Ward has spent the season thus far on the left of Bohs’ 4-2-3-1 system, being more accustomed to playing centrally. Long is happy with Ward’s reinvention.
“He is a clever player, a technician.
“When he is on song and in his full stride, particularly with the Jodi in full voice behind him, he gets excited by that. He was very effective for us tonight.
“He is very creative; that type of player always looking to create and while sometimes he frustrates, creative players do that.
“You have to allow these players the freedom to express themselves.
“As long as he puts in the shift we expect of him, he knows his responsibilities and he understands how we want to play.
”He understands how we want to play and for the good of the team he has to play in that position just for now, and he has done really well.”
Ward, for his part, is happy to stick with his left-sided berth.
“There’s a lot more running out on the left! But since I’ve come here I’ve had a few stints on the left. Ive played in the hole maybe 90% of the time, but we have a great player in Danny Mandriou who can kick on and have a great career, and you want to play with good players.
“So if Danny comes in and I move to the left I don’t mind…as long as Darragh [Leahy] is playing left-back and he’s doing all that running I don’t mind!”
Bohs’ are top of the league, the only side in the Premier Division with a 100% record after three games. Long says the club are remaining grounded, although says that Bohs won’t put any “limits” on their season, either.
It is an impressive start for a side hit with major upheaval during the off-season, which led to the introduction of ten new faces and the loss of some experienced players.
“It is a consistent rebuild every year”, says Long.
“But we tried really hard in pre-season and we had a lot of really good players that were already here: Derek Pender, Keith Buckley, Dinny Corcoran, Keith Ward, Rob Cornwall.
“These are the new leaders that we need to create this year as we lost a lot of leadership last year, with Ian Morris and Shane Supple going in particular.
“It’s not easy, it is very, very difficult to rebuild consistently, but we encourage the players to believe, to express themselves, and there are a lot of worse things to be doing.
“We want them to enjoy themselves and get the most out of their careers when they are with us, in our care.”
Ward seems to be among them.
“We just don’t have the budget to offer players to keep them. You can’t give out to players for leaving for more money, it is a short career.
“As long as Keith and Trevor [Croly] are here I’m happy here. Players will always come and go but when you see the buzz around the ground tonight, it is a good place to be.”
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