Bohemians - 5 Waterford Utd - 1 Glen Crowe rediscovered his scoring touch to hit his fifth hat-trick for Bohemians as they came from behind to blow Waterford United away at Dalymount Park.

The result, Bohemians' biggest win of the season, was just the tonic manager Stephen Kenny would have wanted ahead of next week's Champions League qualifier against BATE Borisov of Belarus.

In a very flat start to the game, it was Waterford who enjoyed the better possession as Bohemians looked decidedly nervous.

Forced by injury to three senior defenders into playing an inexperienced central defence of Ken Oman and Jason McGuinness, the latter making his first league start of the season, Bohemians struggled to get into the match and it was no surprise that they went behind after 24 minutes.

It was a goal that had been coming as the visitors, eager to get their disjointed performance when they snatched a last-minute point at home to UCD last week out of their system, took the game to the champions, who had won 3-1 at the RSC back in May.

New signing Paul Rudden shot over from 20 yards when he might have found the target after just two minutes. That, though, was a signal of things to come from Waterford as Bohemians captain Kevin Hunt had to execute a vital tackle on Daryl Murphy to prevent him getting in on goal on nine minutes, while some hesitant defending by Oman forced Simon Webb into giving away a corner shortly after.

The lead was coming and it wasn't for out-of-sorts Bohemians. Murphy initially forced a corner off Webb after skipping clear down the inside-left channel onto a Kevin O'Brien pass in the 23rd minute. The danger remained and some further suspect defending from the resultant corner, taken by Kevin Waters, cost a goal as Murphy wasn't picked up when given a free header, which he duly dispatched past Matt Gregg.

Shaken by the goal, Bohemians were stirred into action and they gradually got into the game to get their equaliser a minute before the interval.

Robbie Doyle had been their liveliest player, lobbing wide following a quickly taken Crowe free kick before having a volley cleared off the line by Rudden.

The pressure then told on the Waterford goal as they were found wanting defensively when nobody picked up McGuinness, who met Hunt's free kick to loop a header past Dan Connor.

Revitalised by that, Bohemians were a different proposition from the resumption and took the lead within nine minutes.

Simon Webb's long ball down the left was flicked on by Rutherford for Doyle to do the rest and drive a low shot past Connor into the bottom corner.

Doyle was involved again 12 minutes later when his cross flipped up off the foot of Ryan for Crowe to place his header over the stranded Connor for goal number three.

Damien Lynch and Stephen Caffrey then set up Crowe's second goal on 77 minutes, Connor letting the striker's shot through his legs for a soft goal.

Connor then gifted Bohemians another goal a minute later when Ryan's shot from long range came off his shoulder and Crowe followed up to shoot home.

The one sour note on the night was a foot injury to Hunt, who was taken off on a stretcher five minutes from time and must now be a doubt for the trip to Eastern Europe.

BOHEMIANS: Gregg; Lynch, McGuinness, Oman (Heary, h/t), Webb; Ryan, Caffrey, Hunt (Harkin, 85 mins.), Rutherford (Morrison, 85 mins.); Doyle, Crowe.

WATERFORD UNITED: Connor; McLoughlin, Breen, Byrne (Leahy, 62 mins.), Mallon; Sullivan, Rudden, O'Brien (Fitzgerald, 55 mins.), Waters; Reilly (Clifford, 73 mins.), Murphy.

Referee: E Barr (Dublin).