The determination of a Drogheda United official at Lansdowne Road on Saturday to convince those he met that his side would survive the drop seemed rather touching but hardly convincing. The team's manager too has been arguing that things were not as bad as lack of any points would suggest. But then that is what we should expect from a man in Martin Lawlor's rather unenviable position.
Less expected is that he should bring his side to Bohemians yesterday and frustrate one of the league's early pacesetters. That, however, is just what he did with his side producing a display that mixed one part cunning to about 10 blood and guts. They worked hard, they ran tirelessly and they kicked a good deal more than the ball and at the end of it they had, said Lawlor, "done what Derry or Shels would have been proud of" - they had taken a point from Dalymount.
It is, of course, only the first of around 40 they will need to stay in the Premier Division but if Drogheda can begin to grind a few results like this out against the better teams then their rivals in the lower reaches of the table may at least start to see them as serious cause for concern.
Certainly nobody could help but be impressed with the way in which they shielded goalkeeper Eddie Van Boxtel in a match that was dominated from an early stage by the Dubliners. With three men detailed to man-mark, Brian Mooney, Warren Parkes and Graham Lawlor were effectively silenced for long periods while Noel Reid looked comfortable in his sweeping role just behind the rest of the defence.
Just after the half hour Mooney did shake off Alan Murphy long enough to strike the underside of the crossbar from close range after fine work by Donal Broughan down the right. It seemed the home side's best chance of finding the net lay in the likes of Paul Doolin or Peter Hanrahan pushing forward out of midfield.
Of the two Doolin looked the more likely scorer but with Andy Ramage and Rod de Khors hampering any late runs towards the box this route too was proving difficult for the home side to negotiate.
United, meanwhile, showed little by way of scoring ambition themselves. With Brian Irwin alone up front they barely troubled Michael Dempsey, until the 51st minute - John Reid rose highest to meet Roy Fox's corner and the young Dubliner in goal.
Within eight minutes it was all square again - Parkes got free of his marker long enough to unleash a 25-yard shot towards the bottom left corner which Van Boxtel reached but couldn't stop. But despite a near monopoly of the possession and a handful of chances, a winner continued to elude the locals.
Three minutes from time they might have been helped with a penalty but referee Jim O'Reilly, waved play on after John Reid had appeared to drag Reid to the ground. Turlough O'Connor had no complaints though, remarking that "if you have that much of the ball you should be able to put them away". His opposite number wasn't getting carried away with the achievement. "It's a start," said Lawlor, "something to build on." And something, he knows, which will have to be built on consistently over the weeks to come.
