Shelbourne put their awful April behind them and had a magnificent start to May as goals in both halves from Daniel Kelly and Kerr McInroy saw them become the first side to beat Dundalk at Oriel Park this season.
The Drumcondra outfit were made sweat when Daryl Horgan pulled a goal back from the spot a minute from time but they held out for a huge three points.
Joey O'Brien came into the game a manager under pressure following four successive defeats – a run which started with a 3-2 defeat against the Louth men on April 3rd.
However, this victory has seen them leapfrog their way up to sixth in the table ahead of Monday’s Dublin Derby with Bohemians in Dalymount Park.
For Dundalk, it marks a second successive defeat following last week’s 2-0 loss away to Sligo Rovers but their start to the campaign remains above expectation ahead of Monday’s trip to face bottom side Waterford in the RSC.
The visitors were first to threaten with Sam Bone trying his luck from range on eight minutes only to fail to find the target.
Shelbourne then took the lead in somewhat controversial circumstances on 11 minutes when Kelly flicked McInroy’s ball from a short corner routine past Enda Minogue but Dundalk had every reason to feel aggrieved having been denied both a free kick and throw-in in the build-up.
The Lilywhites did go close to a response two minutes later when Eoin Kenny whistled a shot just over, but the game then descended into chaos with referee Paul Norton taking centre stage as he booked members of both backroom teams before sending off Shels coach Mauro Martins.
The incident on 22 minutes followed a tussle between Sean Boyd and Mayowa Animasahun that saw neither player carded but led to bookings for both captains, Daryl Horgan and Paddy Barrett.
Norton’s blushes were somewhat spared on 35 minutes when Kelly, who was clearly offside on the replay, raced onto McInroy’s through ball only to be denied by the legs of Minogue.
Not helped by the stop-start nature of the game, Dundalk finally registered their first attempt on target two minutes before the break but Horgan’s effort was tipped around the post by Wessel Speel.
Both sides would have chances within a couple of minutes of the restart with Gbemi Arubi glancing a header just wide before McInroy was denied at close range by Minogue.
Shels then doubled their lead on 52 minutes with Barrett’s free kick helped on by the head of Boyd with the loose ball coming off Cornwall, allowing McInroy to nip in and slot past Minogue.
Arubi had a fantastic chance to respond on the hour mark when Tyreke Wilson’s cross found him unmarked at the edge of the six-yard box but he headed tamely over in the end.
The former Shels striker would have another chance seven minutes from the time but could only head tamely into the goalkeeper’s arms from Declan McDaid’s cross.
Dundalk were thrown a lifeline a minute from the end when Horgan beat Speel from the spot after Kameron Ledwidge had handled Tyreke Wilson’s cross but despite nine minutes of added time the home side couldn’t force an equaliser, with Kilduff shown a second yellow and a red after the full-time whistle.
Dundalk: Minogue; JR Wilson, Warren (Cornwall HT), Animasahun, T Wilson; Dervin, Buckley (Burns HT); Kenny (McDaid HT), Teahan (Groome 73), Horgan; Arubi.
Shelbourne: Speel; Gannon, Bone, Barrett, Ledwidge; Henry-Francis (Caffrey 81), McInroy, Lunney; Kelly (Chapman 95), Boyd (Freitas 81), Wood (Coote 69).
Referee: Paul Norton.
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