The League of Ireland giants have now won six of the last seven Premier Division titles.

Shamrock Rovers have achieved the “ultimate” once again by clinching their sixth Premier Division crown in seven seasons.

That’s how manager Stephen Bradley described what it would mean to finish on top of the pile in his hard-hitting programme notes.

Adam Brennan’s double just before half-time, and two more from Aaron Greene and Dylan Watts - along with Bohemians’ failure to beat Shelbourne - means the Hoops have an unassailable lead with just one game to go.

The final whistle was greeted with wild celebrations by the majority of the 8,023-strong crowd, while the small travelling contingent looked on in envy.

Before that they burst into song to mark the return of midfielder Gary O’Neill after his battle with testicular cancer.

His last first-team appearance was just over a year ago in Rovers’ FAI Cup semi-final win against Kerry.

There were hugs all round as he replaced goalscorer Watts with just over 12 minutes left to play.

O’Neill was only on the pitch a couple of minutes when news of Shelbourne's lead goal at Dalymount Park spread around Tallaght Stadium.

That’s when the party truly began, with Rovers fans belting out a rendition of Komodo, a song that is regularly aired over the Tolka Park loudspeakers.

They chanted ‘Champions again’ and ‘Stephen Bradley, it’s happened again’, in honour of the club’s most successful ever manager.

The Hoops boss didn’t hold back in his pre-match notes, where he wrote that his players had “been running on fumes at times” this season, with precious little time off in the close-season thanks to their European exploits last season.

He hit out at “some members of the football community in Ireland” who he said were “sick of seeing us compete so regularly at the summit of Irish football.”

Bradley, whose musings were certainly not that of a man who might consider a move to pastures new in the close-season, took aim at Rovers’ critics.

“I heard some suggest that if we are to win the League our season should still be defined as below par. What a ridiculously stupid appraisal,” he wrote.

“Winning the league title in any country at any point in time is the ultimate.”

And once again his players delivered when it mattered. Just when it looked like St Patrick’s Athletic and Bohs might bring it to the last day, Rovers stepped on the gas.

Not even the set-back of last week’s defeat in Galway could stop them winning with a round still to play.

Last night’s opponents Sligo Rovers have just one more top-flight game before they drop down to the First Division for a season of rebuilding under Darren Purse.

They looked reasonably solid for long periods before Brennan’s two close-range efforts, but once Bradley’s men hit the front the result was not in doubt.

Teenager Brennan took his tally to five for the season with his quick-fire brace, while his mazy dribble teed up Watts’ goal.

Watts’ strike ensured it would be Rovers’ biggest league win of the season.

Brennan’s blitz came with half-time approaching, as he netted twice in two minutes and 14 seconds to transform the tie - and the title race.

The 19-year-old has had an unforgettable first year at Tallaght Stadium - including a first senior cap for Ireland in the 1-1 June friendly against Canada.

He opened the scoring in the 39th minute when he was in the right place to sweep the ball home from two yards.

Watts swung at Tunmise Sobowale’s cross, a deflection took the sting out of his effort, but it sent the ball spinning towards Brennan who made no mistake.

The celebrations had barely finished when Brennan had the ball in the net again, this time with a neat six-yard finish to convert Graham Burke’s perfectly weighted pass inside from the left.

It was the perfect time for Brennan to rediscover his touch in front of goal, having last found the net in a 2-1 defeat to Shelbourne in mid-June.

But the visitors were a whisker away from delivering the perfect response, when James McManus, on loan from Bohemians, clipped the post with a header moments before the break.

That’s as good as it got for the visitors, who were on the back-foot again after the break.

Burke dribbled in from the right and attempted to squeeze the ball home from the tightest of angles, but was denied by goalkeeper Liam Hughes.

Substitute Greene made it three in the 72nd minute when he headed home after Brennan’s dribble took him into the area, and his shot looped into the air off an outstretched Sligo boot.

Watts made it 4-0 two minutes later with a fine half-volley finish from the edge of the area.

Predictably enough, calls to stop fans from racing onto the pitch at the final whistle were ignored, as many of the 8,000-plus in attendance raced to celebrate the “ultimate” with their heroes.