It's very much game on in the title race, Shamrock Rovers to visit Derry on Friday week, after City demolished UCD at Belfield tonight.
Andy Myler's kids desperately needed not to concede early but they did as Daniel Mullen pounced on two minutes before Will Patching and Brandon Kavanagh's excellent pair of finishes – each – either side of the break ended any semblance of a debate.
City, who had several first-team starters in the stand or on the bench, are now four off the champions and will be ready for war in nine days' time.
It is hard to know what Rovers manager Stephen Bradley thought of it all among the Belfield crowd, but the Hoops have won their last three. It promises to be an exceptionally tense encounter at Brandywell.
There was not much tension in south Dublin, with UCD winding down before their inevitable relegation, though they did play some nice football at times.
Derry were soon off the mark. The excellent Sadou Diallo sprayed a sweet ball wide to Paul McMullan and his cross was headed home by the in-form Mullan from a handful of yards. Already, one could sense UCD's body language: this would be a long, albeit gloriously sunny September evening.
However, College rallied and Daniel Norris's sublime control preceded a snapshot that reminded Brian Maher, who had the game of his life in Dundalk last Friday, that they had not gone away.
Dara Keane then brilliantly killed a ball with his chest before his effort was deflected wide. UCD grew into the game and a glorious move from one end of the pitch to the other, Cameron McJannett slipping, afforded Dan Kinsella-Bishop a superb chance but Maher made himself big and blocked for a corner.
Midway through the half, Lorcan Healy made a hash of an attempted clearance and
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