Dundalk 1-2 Shamrock Rovers
Karl Sheppard sprung from the bench to end Dundalk's treble hopes and keep Shamrock Rovers quest for a 25th FAI Ford Cup alive as the Hoops booked their place in the semi-finals with a dramatic 2-1 replay win at Oriel Park.
Pat Fenlon's men looked to be limping out of the competition as the game approached the final 10 minutes. Behind to Patrick Hoban's 17th goal of the season, Rovers looked bereft of ideas in the final third.
That all changed in the 81st minute when Sheppard raced onto Sean O'Connor's through ball to level the tie, and seven minutes later he picked up a deflection off Richie Towell to cut into the Dundalk box and stun the Lilywhites.
The home side looked positive in the early stages, but it was the visitors who had the best chance of the opening half hour.
It came from a move that opened Dundalk up on the right.
Ronan Finn set Sean O'Connor up perfectly but the Rovers number 10 saw his curling effort brilliantly tipped over the crossbar by Peter Cherrie.
The tie needed a goal to really kick-start it and it came the home side's way after 41 minutes.
Darren Meenan sent in a delicious free-kick from the right, and with the Rovers defence heading the opposite way, Hoban found himself in acres of space as he headed home his fourth goal of the season against the Tallaght side.
The second half was less than three minutes old when the same duo combined again. This time it was a Meenan corner from the left, and Hoban saw Murphy brush his close-range header against the crossbar and over.
Dundalk cranked up the pressure and both Hoban and Andy Boyle were denied by Murphy in quick succession, Meenan again supplying the ammunition.
Rovers looked like their wait for success in the competition would stretch to 28 years but they were thrown a lifeline when Sheppard, who was introduced four minutes earlier, beat the offside trap to nonchalantly slip the ball past Cherrie.
The game looked destined for extra-time, but the home crowd was stunned into silence when Sheppard took possession on the right and cut into the Dundalk penalty area before setting himself for an effort that beat Cherrie and sparked a pitch invasion by the Rovers fans.
Dundalk: Cherrie; Gannon, Boyle, Rossiter (Higgins 88), Massey; Towell, Shields; Meenan (McMillan 81), Byrne (Mountney 67), Horgan; Hoban
Shamrock Rovers: Murphy; Madden, Kenna, McGuinness, Byrne; Brennan (Waters 53), Cregg, Robinson (McPhail 62), Finn, O'Connor; Kelly (Sheppard 77)
Referee: Dave McKeon (Meath)
