League of Ireland, Premier Division: Shamrock Rovers 1 (Watts 75) Galway United 1
And so the wait is finally over for Shamrock Rovers.
Dylan Watts struck a timely first league goal of the season from a brilliant late free kick to deliver a first win in four league games and rubber-stamp a fifth league title in six seasons.
A record-extending 22nd in total, though one that had had the champagne on ice for some three weeks as this was the fourth time of asking for the title to be delivered.
Up next for Stephen Bradley’s side is a final league game versus Sligo Rovers on Saturday ahead of next week’s trip to face AEK Athens in the Conference League.
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[ How Shamrock Rovers won a fifth Premier Division title in six yearsOpens in new window ]
Focus can then switch to their FAI Cup final date with Cork City on November 9th as they look to complete a double, their first in 38 years.
The result leaves Galway still entangled in a three-way tussle to avoid the relegation playoff place as they head to Waterford on Saturday needing to avoid defeat.
Rovers head coach Bradley made no fewer than six changes in reshuffling his squad from their 2-1 defeat at Derry City on Sunday, including full league debuts for central-midfielder Cian Barrett and under-17 World Cup bound winger Max Kovalevskis.
With just one switch from their 1-1 home draw with Drogheda United last Friday, Galway had the game’s first shot in anger inside two minutes.
Skipper Jimmy Keohane latched on to a loose ball down the left to skip away and drill a shot wide across goal.
While enjoying a good deal of possession, Rovers were having to work hard to find openings through Galway’s disciplined shape.
It was 15 minutes before they did so. Captain Roberto Lopes put plenty of pace on his pass to Rory Gaffney who laid it off first time to Kovalevskis.
The young winger then arced a cross back for Gaffney whose crisp header was straight at goalkeeper Brendan Clarke.
But Hoops had to survive a right let-toff on 19 minutes as Galway counter-attacked dangerously.
Cameroon right-back Jeannot Esua surged forward, nutmegging both Connor Malley and Cory O’Sullivan before laying the ball off for Keohane whose shot was deflected out for a corner.
Galway native Gaffney was proving Rovers’ main threat, chesting a cross down for Malley to blaze over the top, then shooting into the side netting himself as they probed for openings.
The visitors remained a serious threat when they got forward, though, and really should have taken the lead on 36 minutes.
Stephen Walsh’s cross from the left dropped for the loosely marked Aaron Bolger. Perhaps unaware of the time and space he had, the midfielder scooped his half volley over the top.
Rovers made four telling changes just past the hour mark with the experienced Graham Burke, Sean Kavanagh, Watts and Matt Healy introduced.
Burke was close to making an immediate impact but blazed over the crossbar, Rob Slevin having cut out Adam Matthews’ cross.
But the deadlock was finally broken on 75 minutes.
Killian Brouder was booked for dragging the hardworking Gaffney to the ground just outside the area.
Midfielder Watts stepped up to strike a sublime free kick up and over the wall to the top corner of Clarke’s net to cue the inevitable chants of ‘champions’ from the south stand ultras.
SHAMROCK ROVERS: McGinty; Cleary, Lopes, O’Sullivan; Kovalevskis (Kavanagh, 65), Barrett (Helay, 65), Malley (Watts, 65), McEneff, Honohan (Matthews, 52); McGovern (Burke, 65), Gaffney.
GALWAY UNITED: Clarke; Esua, Buckley, Brouder (McCarthy, 79), Burns; Bolger (Piesold, 85), Slevin, Hurley, Keohane; Hickey (Sivi, 88), Walsh.
Referee: Aaron O’Dowd.
Attendance: 5,279.
