Just as they did when they met on the first day of the season in Inchicore, these two shared the points on Saturday night but that, quite definitely, is where the similarities between the two games ended.

While the first encounter had been short on chances but with an abundance of tough defending this game belonged to both sets of strikers.

Each set worked tirelessly from the outset and, while the meeting in August had ended scoreless, this time Martin Reilly and Liam Coyle both produced outstanding finishes in the first half.

On the basis of the run of play it was difficult for either manager to complain about the outcome. The Dubliners had run the show early on and, as Pat Dolan said afterwards, might have added to their early lead. Steadily, however, the game slipped away from them and in the closing stages it was they who looked the more uncomfortable as they dug in for the draw.

The visiting manager had opted to play with three up front from the start, a tactic which clearly caused the home side's defence some distress without quite, as the Saint's manager admitted afterwards "getting us the penetration I was looking for."

Ian Gilzean provided a focus around the centre but the greater source of problems for Paul Curran and Gavin Dykes was the running of Martin Reilly and Trevor Molloy who repeatedly ripped the locals' offside trap to pieces with well times breaks from 30 or 40 yards out.

One such break, after just eight minutes, had involved Eddie Gormley releasing Reilly with a marvellous curling ball from the right and, from the time the striker emerged from the midst of three City defenders and chested on, there was little doubt about where the ball was going to end up.

Trevor Wood had to make the best save of the night shortly afterwards to push Coyle's drive wide of the post but there was nothing he could do three minutes from the break when, out of a harmless enough looking Paul Hegarty ball, Coyle flicked the ball into the air, turned and struck an early shot that flew into the top left corner off the underside of the bar. They'll be lucky if they see another like it this season at the Brandywell but then, as Felix Healy says "you just never know with Mister Coyle".

Coyle was later withdrawn, looking stiff an uncomfortable after a recurrence of a back injury that had also forced his early exit a week ago in Drogheda.

With around 20 minutes remaining Dolan pulled a man back into midfield, a move which Felix Healy said, "meant they had given up the ghost and decided to settle for the draw". Healy, however, like his opposite number, was happy enough with the outcome.

"Let's not forget," he said afterwards "that Derry didn't really win the title against St Patrick's or Shelbourne, or Cork or Bohemians last year, we won it against the rest of them." They may yet retain it in the same way.