SOCCER/Shelbourne 2 Waterford United 1: With eight points from their previous eight league outings Shelbourne's form of late had had a distinctly mid-table look about it. Thankfully for Pat Fenlon and co it still looks as though they did enough during the first three quarters of the current campaign to get across next week's finish line as champions.

However, had it not been for goals from Wes Hoolahan and Jason Byrne next week's trip to Inchicore would have been a particularly nail-biting affair.

Waterford United came to Dublin last night with little other than pride to play for and after a terribly shaky 45 minutes they more than salvaged that with a battling second-half display.

In the end, though, the league leaders were worth their win. That they led by two goals after 23 minutes scarcely began to reflect their superiority up to that point and Jason Byrne, despite grabbing his 25th goal of the campaign, will be one of several players disappointed not to have added to the home side's tally in a one-sided first half.

At least one English club had someone along to watch Waterford striker Daryl Murphy although it's hard to imagine any visiting scout wouldn't have been too transfixed by the horror show that unfolded at the other end of the field to pay much heed to how the subdued 21-year-old was getting on.

Shelbourne, to be fair, were playing as if their title aspirations depended on putting eight past their visitors and there were spells during the first half when it seemed they just might manage it. Their attack, though, could hardly look anything other than impressive against a Waterford defence that repeatedly allowed the likes of Hoolahan, Glen Fitzpatrick and Jason Byrne to sweep almost unobstructed goalwards.

Had Fitzpatrick been in the mood for scoring he could well have had a hat-trick during the opening quarter of the game while only the efforts of Dan Connor and the occasional intervention of the full backs prevented Fenlon's men from putting the result well beyond doubt inside the first 30 minutes.

Connor, though, was at least partly to blame for Shelbourne's opening goal with the big Dubliner perhaps seeing Hoolahan's low 25-metre drive a little late but he dived to his right long after any serious prospect of preventing it slipping inside the bottom corner had passed.

That was just seven minutes in and the only issue during the quarter of an hour which followed was when the would-be champions would double their lead.

Fitzpatrick went closest but in the end it was Jason Byrne who put his side in a commanding position after his striking partner had flicked on a long ball and the league's leading scorer brought his tally to 25 with a delightfully cool finish that left Connor helpless.

Until this point United had been limited to just one serious break out of defence, a move that ended with Vinny Sullivan narrowly missing the target from long range. Such was the pace of the game, however, that they seemed more likely to grab one themselves than suddenly start to contain a Shelbourne side that was stretching them in every direction.

Had Alan Reynolds been fit enough to play, one suspects, the visitors might have been able to steady things a little in midfield before the break and the United boss must have dismayed as he watched David Mulcahy and Mark Clifford being so effortlessly bypassed in the centre of the field.

Still, after Connor had blocked another Byrne shot with his feet and Davie Breen had cleared Jim Crawford's 10 yard drive off the line there were finally some signs of an improvement although nothing quite significant enough to prepare the home support for Willie Bruton's neatly finished goal two minutes before the interval.

The goal shouldn't really have done much to affect the overall balance of the contest but when they returned Shelbourne looked a little rattled and never dominated to the same extent for any period of time through the second half.

Now both sides were creating the odd chance but for the most part the game was transformed into a far more physical battle with United making life a great deal more difficult between midfield and attack.

Reynolds, clearly feeling there was a point in the game for his side, threw Pat Purcell on up front in the hope the centre half would pose an aerial threat to the locals but out wide Waterford simply never managed to get behind the Shelbourne full backs with the result that Steve Williams was rarely seriously tested.

At the end there was some disappointment amongst the local fans that their team had come close to delivering on their early promise but when word of Cork's win at United Park came through there was relief too that Fenlon's men need only draw with St Patrick's next Friday in order to be crowned champions again.

SHELBOURNE: Williams; Heary, Rogers, Harris, Crawley; Hoolahan, Crawford, S Byrne, Cahill; Fitzpatrick (McCarthy, 80 mins), J Byrne.

WATERFORD UNITED: Connor; Coleman, Breen, Whelehan, Frost; Sullivan (O'Brien, 75 mins), Clifford (Purcell, 75 mins), Mulcahy, Waters; Murphy, Bruton.

Referee: A Kelly (Cork).