SOCCER LEAGUE OF IRELAND: IT'S BEEN a while since a meeting between these two old rivals has been a top-of-the-table clash but Shamrock Rovers travel to Dalymount Park tomorrow's game with Bohemians (kick-off 1pm) aiming to cut the gap between the sides to two points and step up their title challenge.

Few would have doubted when the campaign was getting under way that Bohemians would be firmly in the hunt to retain their title but the extent of Rovers’ progress under new manager Michael O’Neill has been a surprise, with the former Northern Ireland international getting a string of impressive results.

None of his signings so far has looked a better piece of business than Scottish striker Gary Twigg, who he had worked with at Brechin City before moving to Dublin during the close season.

The 25-year-old was an immediate target for O’Neill after he landed the Rovers job and the player showed little hesitation about accepting the offer. Six months on, he’s the toast of Tallaght with his 16 league goals placing him joint top of the league’s goalscoring chart with Bohemians’ Jason Byrne and enabling Rovers to mount a long-awaited challenge for a 16th championship title.

“When I went to Brechin it took me two or three games to see that Gary was someone who shouldn’t have been playing at that level,” says O’Neill.

“Technically, he’s a very good player, you can see he’s been very well coached and has a good understanding of the game.”

Twigg started out at Derby and made his first team debut against Sunderland at the age of 17 when County were in the English top flight. Though always well regarded, things didn’t work out for him at the club, and he has been about the place a bit in the years since.

There were a couple of decent loan spells at Burton and some time at Airdrie United before an injury cost him his place at Oxford after a promising start and he headed back to Scotland and Hamilton.

The modest fee Rovers paid for him prompted one fan to brandish a banner at the Real Madrid game which read: “€95 for a stick. €20,000 for a Twigg,” and there was a sense out in Tallaght on Monday that some of the club’s supporters really believed the Scot just might steal the limelight from Ronaldo.

In the end, though, O’Neill rested the striker for most of the night, keenly aware that he must keep his top scorer firing on all cylinders until the end of November, some 15 months after his last break from the game.

Twigg is set to return to the Rovers starting 11 tomorrow as O’Neill reverts to something very much in line with the side that has won its last four league games.

Sean O’Connor is suspended but Padraig Amond and Darragh Maguire come into the reckoning.

Bohemians are again without Owen Heary as they look to pick themselves up from the crushing disappointment of Wednesday’s defeat by Red Bull Salzburg.

Elsewhere, Derry take on Cork at the Brandywell, fresh from their European win on Thursday night, without Clive Delaney (suspended) or Sammy Morrow who joins an injury list that already includes the likes of Liam Kearney, Stephen Gray and Mark McChrystal.

Cork begin life without Colin Healy and Denis Behan while Greg O’Halloran and Pat Sullivan are both suspended.

Sligo are still without Gavin Peers, Stephen Parkhouse and Richie Ryan tomorrow night but Conor O’Grady and Danny Ventre return from suspension for Paul Cook.

Jeff Kenna has half of his defence – Jason Gavin and Enda Stevens – out due to bans but will at least be able to give a league debut to Declan O’Brien