WHILE a few of the bigger clubs the National League have had learn to cope with under achievement, at Bohemians they have learned to live with it day in and out as a constant companion.

Since they last won the league in 1978 they have finished second in it four times and while they have won the cup once during the intervening 19 years they have also lost twice in the final.

The bitterness of failure is made all the worse by the memory of how sweet success can be, the realisation of just how much latent support there is out there for the "Gypsies" and, this season, by an awareness that it is all in danger of unravelling again.

"It's really frustrating because if we could just get our acts together we could be the biggest club in the country, without a doubt," says full back Donal Broughan who remembers well the last day the team carried a major piece of silverware back to Dalymount.

"The place was unbelievable. We'd gone off and had something to eat together after the game but even then it took us almost an hour to get into the place. You couldn't move and the atmosphere around the whole area was brilliant for a long time afterwards."

Now, after a wonderfully strong showing early on in the league, the Cup represents the only real hope, of a trophy again but in Derry they have been drawn against a side who have seemed to have, their measure throughout the season.

"They've had the better of the matches all right, but this is a different game and we'll be desperate to win," he says. "It's not as if they're unbeatable, we just have to get in around them and keep our concentration."

One bright point, however, has been the return to the side of Broughan who, after a groin operation at the start of the season, has gradually edged his way back towards his best. "It was tough coming back at first because you forget how fast the game is, but I wasn't rushed at all and I'm happy with the way I'm playing now."

There was a time, though, when a major question seemed to hang over his temperament with Broughan endlessly becoming entangled in rows with referees.

"It was a bit of a problem but I've calmed down a lot now. Part of the problem, though, is that some referees are out looking to book certain players and I think I still suffer from that a little bit," he says.

Broughan's contribution this evening should be vital for his side as they desperately try to emulate their success of 1992. Even though they are missing several key players, he says that training has gone well this week and that the Dubliners are well prepared for their biggest game of the season.