Games 5th/6th April

[Jd2793]

Great performance from rovers.
Great to win in cork.
Well deserved 3 points played some cracking stuff and looked to me like ye could have upped it a gear or 2 if needed. Players have given up on JC bar one or 2 on last nights viewing. That 3rd goal was an embarrassment to give away. What I'd give to still have Bolger down here, played a stormer last night.

[Kingswood Rover]

Well, so the finishing within 10 pts of Dundalk idea of progress is now looking very achievable. But talk of Rovers winning the league is way wide of the mark at this early stage. Some great performances last night. Bolger MOM, the way he took the ball of Lopez in particular as his distribution is poor and got things moving up the pitch was very impressive. Grace was a mountain again at the back. Mc,Manus though as to command his box better for Corners he was rooted to the spot for the goal. Trevor Clarke looked like he was only 70% fit in the first 2 thirds of the game but towards the end he was immense always available on the left and driving forward.

[placid casual]

Delighted for Bradley, and the board for sticking with him. He has the player's he wants at the club, has cleared out the deadwood and we move forward.
Onwards and upwards.
Also delighted for H over in inchicore. He needed that result.
And finally also delighted for that mouthy t*** Cleary.
"You're hardly gonna believe us, we're going to finish 2nd"!!

[pineapple stu]

Christ, what a "tackle" from Harps for the red card last night. Don't know how to embed twitter videos, but it's the first clip in the below. Second red card in as many weeks, and 27 yellows from ten games (Cork, the standard bearers of fair play of course, have 18 from 8, and no reds). Has to be something Horgan has to address; can't be losing players like that.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1114278066816073728

UCD v Waterford goals here; UCD wearing white tells you who was ref -

https://twitter.com/i/status/1114276278184497152

Pat's v Dundalk here -

https://twitter.com/i/status/1114275453382975488

Cork v Rovers at individual links - 0-1 (https://twitter.com/i/status/1114246200360747008), 0-2 (https://twitter.com/i/status/1114248549342912512), 1-2 (https://twitter.com/i/status/1114249736343580673), 1-3 (https://twitter.com/i/status/1114259225293623296)

[Ezeikial]

Delighted for Bradley, and the board for sticking with him. He has the player's he wants at the club, has cleared out the deadwood and we move forward.


Who were the deadwood?

Were these signed on long term deals by Fenlon back in 2016?

[Longfordian]

Town go top of the league with a game in hand, still unbeaten in the league. Have to be happy with that start, Bray up next in the CCS. Win that one and we’re flying but it’s a mad league.

[bennocelt]

At the Pats game last night. Pats were set up very well, and their back 4 were sterling throughout. Rhys McCabe was brilliant, and the amount of room he covered, left to right all night, excellent stuff. The last ten minutes were backs to the wall stuff but the roar from the crowd once the final whistle went was great. Always have a great time in Inchicore, hopefully this will propel them onwards and upwards. Didn't mind getting drenched at all!!! (and seen Tom!!)

[RathfarnhamHoop]

Great to see UCD thump Waterford last night. The way UCD have been playing that result was coming. What's up with the pitch at the bowl though? Apparently there were two rugby games on it on Thursday, in that weather that's madness.

[pineapple stu]

Yeah, Colours matches were on Thursday.

Problem now is we have five league matches this month, two more in May, and 6 UEFA games as well.

Pitch usually improves markedly from April, but not sure if it'll have the time to this season.

[Hitman]

Cork, the standard bearers of fair play of course, have 18 from 8, and no reds


6 of those came in one game up in Sligo.

[oriel]

Stadium isn't all covered. Roof doesn't go full length About 60% of the Donie Forde, 40% of the St Anne's aren't covered. Both our biggest stands.

But yes, we've a big floating fan base. 2.5k is about the hard-core. Anything above that is a bonus based of context.

Is that much really uncovered ? I still think it would be considered 'mostly covered'. The one thing that surprised me was why they didn't go the whole length when the Donie Forde was built, there is a far gap you don't realise when watching on tv, the bit between where it ends at the St Anne's stand. Its still an excellent ground.

[Martinho II]

Shout out to the little Derry scumbags who tried to rob our flags. Hardy bucks. His excuse was that it was only a flag. Feel sorry for all the good people who support the club as they have to put up with a load of delinquents when they seem to come to ballybofey. Anyway just we got the flags back and the lads involved ended up having to go back with their tails between their legs. Anyway for the match itself. Typical blood and thunder derby. Full time training paid off with that bit more class in the end, especially the second goal. Harps fought bravely but just wasn't to be. The tackle was a shocker and put us with another mountain to climb. With all his talk this week coll was always going to be at the receiving end of a barrage of abuse but to see him taken away in an ambulance was unfortunate. Anyway on to next week

havent seen the piece about coll but what was it that he said that was co controversial?

[Martinho II]

At the Pats game last night. Pats were set up very well, and their back 4 were sterling throughout. Rhys McCabe was brilliant, and the amount of room he covered, left to right all night, excellent stuff. The last ten minutes were backs to the wall stuff but the roar from the crowd once the final whistle went was great. Always have a great time in Inchicore, hopefully this will propel them onwards and upwards. Didn't mind getting drenched at all!!! (and seen Tom!!)

saw tom in sligo bus station the day after we played Derry City in the Brandywell. wondering was he at the game too?

[micls]

Is that much really uncovered ? I still think it would be considered 'mostly covered'. The one thing that surprised me was why they didn't go the whole length when the Donie Forde was built, there is a far gap you don't realise when watching on tv, the bit between where it ends at the St Anne's stand. Its still an excellent ground.

Yeah, it is. Full bottom half of Donie is empty in rain and a bit more depending on wind direction. Definitely would be nice for it to be fully covered.

[oriel]

To be fair the East Stand in Tallaght is also quite exposed to the rain, but these are tiny complaints most clubs would like to have !

Genuine question, Micls and other Cork fans, thats two games in a row I've seen you and you looked well off the pace (I didn't go to Pats away last night but I heard we were dreadful), but just interested in your view.

Do you think Cork have really declined so bad or is this just a really bad patch, plus do you think its a possibility that you might miss out on europe ? I'm not so sure you will miss out, but you need to start winning big games soon.

[marinobohs]

FT Sligo 0 Bohemian FC 2.

[patrickccfc]

With the players we lost from last season and the overloaded squad, that lacks quality in my opinion, particularly the options off the bench, I expected to us to fall behind a bit this year, but it's a bit worse than I thought at this point. The football is awful to watch and the man in charge seems a bit clueless when things aren't going out way. Doesn't help when we don't really have a settled starting 11 and our more experienced players aren't performing at the level we've come to expect from them. We're a tough watch most of the times, results are poor, if the current trend continues then attendances will fall quickly. Missing out on Europe would be devastating. If things don't improve, does the board have a tough decision to make?
Pats next Friday is huge. The fans will want to see a bit of fight from the players, signs that something can still be achieved this season.

[Kingswood Rover]

Thats a great win for Bohs away to the Sligs, setting up nicely for Tues 23rd in Tallaght. probably the most looked forward game for us since Spurs away i am still studying the law of averages:D

[oriel]

That's a fairly honest post there Patrick, it definitely looks a sticky patch you boys are going through.

I noticed one thing last night from TV, your right full challenged for a ball right in front of the Cork bench and he lost possession in the tackle but it deflected back off him for a Rovers throw, Caulfield slaughtered him, used the F word also, I thought that was uncalled for, he should be encouraging them, the lad made a mistake. That's not going to help the players.

Closer to home, I'd be a little concerned now that the players standing in for the injured trio of Shields, Benson and McEleney with the exception of Murray maybe, or not as good as we had hoped for.

EDIT, Bohs winning tonight, must be all the way back to 2011 since these two were 1 and 2 in the league !

[dong]

Disappointing night tonight.
Full credit to the Bohs fans who were in the Showgrounds in big numbers and generated lots of noise. Which was just as well with our miserable home support. It actually sounded like Bohs were the home team. It seems the only time our fans react is when they have something to complain about. Not what you would call support.
I thought we played well until the sending off and did enough on the pitch tonight for the home fans to get behind. The first goal for Bohs was a bit of a fluke and we couldnt muster much after that with 10 men.
Hard to know where we will pick up any points in the coming games.

[bluewhitearmy]

I still haven't gotten over the Galway PA calling out the score in Liverpool game during play in the game. Fairly cringeworthy.

[micls]

To be fair the East Stand in Tallaght is also quite exposed to the rain, but these are tiny complaints most clubs would like to have !

Genuine question, Micls and other Cork fans, thats two games in a row I've seen you and you looked well off the pace (I didn't go to Pats away last night but I heard we were dreadful), but just interested in your view.

Do you think Cork have really declined so bad or is this just a really bad patch, plus do you think its a possibility that you might miss out on europe ? I'm not so sure you will miss out, but you need to start winning big games soon.

I think it's a combination really. We are lacking genuine quality in a lot of areas, but we're also completely lacking in any confidence at all. Without that it's hard to see us improving.

Look at the comparison to Bohs. We beat them comfortably in TC, but they're 7 points ahead of us. We totally outplayed Derry but never looked like scoring. We don't have the week to week confidence and consistency.

We were always built on being rock solid defensively and then the goals would come. This season we have been shocking at the back. If that continues, you couldnt be sure about anything.

I wouldn't be getting overly excited about league position or euro spots yet,but April is a huge month. Going into so many games and a pivotal part of the season in the form we're in could be make or break.

[sbgawa]

I think the obits for cork are a bit premature.
Bohs dundalk and rovers are playing each other over the next few weeks and cork have a reasonably kind run of fixtures.
A decent run through April will be vital though

[PartySaint]

I did not see that win coming at all on Friday, it was a good battling 'we need a win' performance rather than a get the ball down and out play a team performance. It will be hard for the players to replicate that every week.

On Dundalk I assume it was just a bad night at the office but they looked like a shadow of the team they have been the past few season although in saying that Pats usually just folded when we have played them over the past 4 seasons.

[micls]

I think the obits for cork are a bit premature.
Bohs dundalk and rovers are playing each other over the next few weeks and cork have a reasonably kind run of fixtures.
A decent run through April will be vital though

If you'd been watching us regularly you'd know a league challenge is 100% off the cards. More worried about finding a bit of passion and putting in a couple of decent performances.

[Couch Potato]

That's a fairly honest post there Patrick, it definitely looks a sticky patch you boys are going through.

I noticed one thing last night from TV, your right full challenged for a ball right in front of the Cork bench and he lost possession in the tackle but it deflected back off him for a Rovers throw, Caulfield slaughtered him, used the F word also, I thought that was uncalled for, he should be encouraging them, the lad made a mistake. That's not going to help the players.

Closer to home, I'd be a little concerned now that the players standing in for the injured trio of Shields, Benson and McEleney with the exception of Murray maybe, or not as good as we had hoped for.

EDIT, Bohs winning tonight, must be all the way back to 2011 since these two were 1 and 2 in the league !

That was the obvious difference on Friday all 3 midfield players for Dundalk were pretty horrendous including Murray.
After that Flores didn't look like a footballer at all.
Still think Dundalk will win the league once they get the midfield players back in the team but Rovers look like they'll make a real fight of it.

We set up well and battled hard and for once weren't physically dominated, we got a bit of luck with the goal but it was a great ball in considering the conditions.

Worryingly for me our best performance have been battling shut up shop jobs against last seasons top 2. For me that's not going to work against the teams we need to be beating so whilst its a great result and I really enjoyed the spirit, we still have work to do going forward.

Cork away Friday I'd expect the same se up and performance with chances for both sides few and far between.

[marinobohs]

I think the obits for cork are a bit premature.
Bohs dundalk and rovers are playing each other over the next few weeks and cork have a reasonably kind run of fixtures.
A decent run through April will be vital though

Cork are a decent side and I would be surprised if they finish outside Top 4. Far too early to read anything much into the table, great so far for Bohs but unlikely :cool: to finish the season second. Dundalk will, as usual, improve as season goes on and I still think Pats have a fine collection of players that will improve as they gel. Winning the League looks to be between Dundalk and Shams, while shams have done very well so far the lack of a decent striker still may haunt them longer term.

[Nesta99]

Things could spiral down for Cork quite quickly if Caulfield doesnt stop the rot. Missing out on Europe and budgeting for an average crowd o circa 4k could mean some serious adjustment in the club budget ould be needed. Caulfield needs to go back to basics, he is as good as any manager at getting the best from a limited and small squad. Get his side defensively sound again and work from there. Cut back the squad if need be also. Its a very quick change from the last 5 seasons with Dundalk and Cork struggling a but albeit with different potential to get closer to the title race. I hate games in hand tbh, its a psychological boost to have a gap at the top and the pressure on those with games in hand to make them count. Ive felt with the injuries that if we are in touch at minimum, when inhured players ome back that we can kick on. With the league format at least, a 10 point gap can be closed without relying on others with having to play another 3 times + win games in hand.

[TonyD]

We set up well and battled hard and for once weren't physically dominated, we got a bit of luck with the goal but it was a great ball in considering the conditions.

Worryingly for me our best performance have been battling shut up shop jobs against last seasons top 2. For me that's not going to work against the teams we need to be beating so whilst its a great result and I really enjoyed the spirit, we still have work to do going forward.

Cork away Friday I'd expect the same se up and performance with chances for both sides few and far between.

Would agree with all of that. Great battling performance on Friday, with some nice ball played at times, but we'going to need to produce more than that against mid ranking teams that we'd be expecting to beat with this squad of players. At least we know there's no lack of commitment from the players though, despite what Stuey Byrne seems to think.

[Calcio Jack]

Things could spiral down for Cork quite quickly if Caulfield doesnt stop the rot. Missing out on Europe and budgeting for an average crowd o circa 4k could mean some serious adjustment in the club budget ould be needed. Caulfield needs to go back to basics, he is as good as any manager at getting the best from a limited and small squad. Get his side defensively sound again and work from there. Cut back the squad if need be also. Its a very quick change from the last 5 seasons with Dundalk and Cork struggling a but albeit with different potential to get closer to the title race. I hate games in hand tbh, its a psychological boost to have a gap at the top and the pressure on those with games in hand to make them count. Ive felt with the injuries that if we are in touch at minimum, when inhured players ome back that we can kick on. With the league format at least, a 10 point gap can be closed without relying on others with having to play another 3 times + win games in hand.

Agree once you get your magnificent three back you’ll most likely be a better team... on the other hand I think we’ll get much much better ( subject to no injuries/suspensions) as we’re only now starting to gel and I think there’s way more to come from our midfield particularly , then again with Bradley at the helm you never know but Green shoots of optimism are starting to sprout - by end April we’ll have a much clearer sense of who the challengers are and who the spoofers are

[Nesta99]

The tendency to improve as the leagie progresses fits for most sides. It's not just the injured trio of Shields, McEleney, Benson that is hampering us, Murray, Flores, havent been near full fitness and McKee is a total unknown without game time. Hoban isnt firing either yet but he is getting and creating chances so hopefully he will become more clinical as the league progresses.