Damien Duff has said that he takes immense pleasure from 'little old Shels' proving the doubters wrong as his side set up an Extra.ie FAI Cup final date with Derry City at the Aviva Stadium on 13 November.
Gavin Molloy was the hero for Shelbourne as his goal gave them a 1-0 semi-final win over Waterford and booked a cup final spot for the club for the first time since 2011.
For manager Duff, it was another reminder that the Tolka Park side are a serious proposition on the domestic scene.
"I'll have to change my mindset because all I've said all along is ‘get to the final, get to the final.’ I never addressed winning the final," he told RTÉ Sport afterwards.
"The guys, the staff, myself alone, we’ll have to change that mindset. We’re in it to win it now.
"Listen, we’ve won, [but] we shouldn’t be here. 'Little old Shels', as people call us, everyone hates us, I think. We’re in the [Premier] division for another year and we’re in the final, it doesn’t get any better."
Shelbourne missed a host of chances to make the final scoreline more comfortable, but Duff praised his ‘lions’ for getting the job done.
"Absolutely amazing, it’s a dream come true. It absolutely blows away anything I’ve ever done in my career.
"An amazing day, obviously a hostile crowd, four or five thousand. Did we play great? No. But I told the guys in the dressing room beforehand that it was 18 lions versus four or five thousand and we’ve come out on top. So I couldn’t be any prouder.
"Sometimes it can come back to bite you," he added on those missed chances. "You can feel the nerves, the tension and maybe we looked a bit leggy from the emotion of the game in the second half.
"It doesn’t matter what way as long as you get through."
Duff had a special word for the goal-scoring hero who finished beautifully in the 15th minute for what would ultimately prove to be the winning strike.
Shels lead in Waterford.
— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) October 16, 2022
The crispest of strikes by Gavin Molloy as the Premier Division outfit go ahead.
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"His grandad Theo [a cup winner with the club in 1960] will be very proud along with the extended family, there's quite a few of them, but listen Gav’s been outstanding.
"That sliding doors moment - three, four months ago, gets his chance, takes it and all of a sudden he’s playing in a cup final. It’s what dreams are made of."
