Bohemians work the miracle

He doesn't look like a messiah, but they reckon that Roddy Collins is something of a modern-day miracle worker. Yesterday, just two-and-a-half years after assuming managerial control of a club in turmoil, he led them to the Promised Land as this one-time giant of Irish football captured the eircom Premier League Trophy after a 23-year gap.

"This is where this club belongs," said Collins, shortly after his side's 5-0 away win over Kilkenny City, coupled with Cork City's win over longtime leaders Shelbourne, gave Bohemians a championship win that had seemed improbable just four months ago. At that stage, Shelbourne were 12 points ahead in the title race and apparently out of reach. However, Bohemians won seven of their last eight games and defied logic. Collins, for one, wasn't the least surprised.

"A few months ago, a little woman from the Liberties, Jimmy Fullam's granny, gave me rosary beads and a card. I hadn't seen rosary beads since my First Communion, but I was stood in the hotel before our first cup game and I had a strong premonition that I'd be sitting on the sofa in that same hotel having a pint after we had won the league," he remarked.

Such clairvoyance skills aren't normally a requisite for a football manager and, even so, Collins was forced to leave his favoured touchline position three minutes before the end of yesterday's match. "My stomach was churning so much I just couldn't take it," he said, by way of explaining his retreat to the dressing-room.

Indeed, as soon as their match finished, all of the Bohemians players were shepherded into that same dressing-room as the match in Tolka Park hadn't yet concluded. One player used his mobile phone to ring a friend who was at the Shelbourne-Cork City match and relayed the final moments to the rest of the squad. No champagne was uncorked until the final whistle sounded, and then sheer euphoria took over.

"This day two years ago we were in UCD fighting for our survival as a club," said Collins in emphasising how far they have come in the interim. Now, as league champions and with the FAI Cup final just a week away, Bohemians appear to have regained their place in the pecking order.

Collins, who doesn't have a contract, isn't ruling out a possible move to a managerial position in English football. "I want to go to the top. I have my ambitions," he said, adding that the club need to move on and "look at the overall situation, the youths. We've got to work to get this, get that. If we could have a Rosenborg here, why would you want to leave? But things can't continue the way they were."

Such a statement of intent has obviously struck a cord with the players. One of them, Glenn Crowe, already named PFAI Player of the Year, capped off a memorable season by scoring two goals yesterday to break two records: Kevin O'Flanagan's all-time club record and Jonathan Speake's all-time league record.

Crowe's two goals yesterday brought his league total to 25 and his season's tally to 35.

"It's brilliant to get this reward, winning the league, and hopefully I'll be back next season and score more goals . . . and we also have the Champions League to look forward to. I have my own ambitions. I've played in England (with Wolves) and enjoyed it."