Shamrock Rovers ... 2 Bohemians ... 0 For anyone even vaguely involved with the Shamrock Rovers cause it was a delight. They've been through some tough times these last few years, and to be back in a cup final again seemed, for a little while at least, to make the struggle all worthwhile.

There may be some truth in their claim that the game here needs a strong Rovers, and certainly few could begrudge them their overdue day in the limelight - against Derry City on the last Sunday of this month.

But this result will be seen by the rest of the clubs caught in the dust cloud thrown up by Bohemians' storming start to the league campaign as welcome confirmation that the title favourites can, after all, be beaten.

Stephen Kenny's side came into the game with an unbeaten record that stretched back to last year's final against Dundalk. Again they faced the handicap of playing on a pitch that severely limited the freedom of their wingers to get really wide, and once more they carried the heavy burden of being strong favourites. Just as it was at the end of last season, however, their biggest problem was that they came up against a team for whom everything just seemed to click on the day.

The Rovers central defence needed to perform strongly if Paul Keegan and Glen Crowe were to be kept at bay, but Pat Scully and particularly Terry Palmer did much more than that; they were outstanding. Richie Byrne, a player of growing stature but who is still occasionally exposed for his lack of experience, performed flawlessly, and even the generally erratic Stephen Kenny worked like a man possessed. All clearly had their eyes fixed firmly on the prize.

As Kenny said, his men had plenty of possession in the opening half when Mark Rutherford caused his usual problems on the left flank and Kevin Hunt toiled endlessly in the centre to turn defence into attack. Bobby Ryan was uncharacteristically subdued, however, while nothing bounced quite right for the team's prolific striking partnership.

In fact, with Tony Grant back alongside Sean Francis for the injured Noel Hunt, the Rovers front pair suggested they might prove more creative than their rivals early on when they linked up well outside the area and, after a couple of swift exchanges, Francis knocked the ball just wide of the target.

At the other end, Bohemians' best chances of the spell came when their Hunt beat Jason Colwell to a bouncing ball and Tony O'Dowd had to get down quickly to his left to push the ball around the post.

It was a rare slip-up by Colwell, another of the Rovers men to shine on the day, and one of the few times that the team's goalkeeper had to seriously trouble himself, for while there were plenty of close-quarter battles fought in or around his area, there were few successful attempts to turn the ball goalwards, while long-range efforts by the likes of Hunt, Caffrey and, later on, Fergal Harkin were badly off the mark.

Thirty minutes in James Keddy should have put Rovers in front when Tony Grant touched a Byrne cross perfectly into his path, but the midfielder's shot was straight at the goalkeeper and you suspected that the poor quality of the finish might come back to haunt him before the half was out.

Instead, Palmer rose high to meet a Greg Costello corner three minutes before the break and head the ball sweetly into the top right corner. The goal was close to being set piece perfection, which did little to assuage Kenny as he observed that it was the first goal from a free or corner his men had conceded since last year's cup decider.

"After that they defended deep, left very little space behind them and made it difficult for us," he observed. He was also disappointed his players had pursued an equaliser with such abandon from almost the start of the second half.

The upshot was that within 15 minutes they were two behind, the goal this time the result of a Tony Grant sprint down the right and cross to the far side of the six-yard box from where Keddy produced an uncertain finish with his knee that beat the wrong-footed Ashley Bayes and slipped inside the upright.

Now fighting an uphill battle, Bohemians threw on Gary O'Neill for Damien Lynch, and with 10 minutes remaining added Derek Coughlan to the attack. There was still plenty of ball to work with but little to show for all the effort as Palmer and Scully continued to dominate their area.

As they pressed ever further forward they might have been caught on the break again, with Luke Dimech twice coming close to putting one of the Rovers strikers clear. The delight that greeted the final whistle suggested, however, that 2-0 was more than enough for players, most of whom had been on the losing side at this stage of the competition for the last two seasons, and supporters who have waited 11 years since the defeat by Galway United to taste the excitement of a final and, more importantly, endured 15 since they had anything to sing about.

SHAMROCK ROVERS: O'Dowd; Costello, Scully, Palmer, Byrne; S Grant (Robinson, 84 mins), Colwell, Dimech (Tracey, 88 mins), Keddy; T Grant, Francis.

BOHEMIANS: Bayes; Lynch (O'Neill, 64 mins), Hawkins, McNally, Webb; Ryan (Harkin, 70 mins), Hunt, Caffrey (Coughlan, 81 mins), Rutherford; Crowe, Keegan.

Referee: P McKeon (Dublin).