Cahill gets City season up and running with superb hat-trick
St Patrick’s Athletic 1
Cork City 3
HAVING survived the possible docking of nine points for an administrative blunder on Thursday, St Patrick’s Athletic had no hiding place as Ollie Cahill came to Richmond Park and blew them away with a superb hat-trick to finally get Cork City’s season up and running.
City, playing against a stiff breeze in the first-half, had to survive some severe early pressure from St Pat’s before taking the lead with a bolt-from-the-blue goal from Ollie Cahill on 13 minutes. The City goal led a charmed life, with only the woodwork preventing them falling behind twice inside the opening 11 minutes. Livewire Ugandan international winger, Mbabazi Livingstone, provided the main threat. He initially cracked a shot off Michael Devine’s left-hand post on nine minutes after a sweeping move down the left involving Martin Russell and Ger McCarthy.
St Pat’s bright start was dampened when City shocked them to take the lead with their first real attack.
Devine’s kick-out was flicked on by Stephen O’Flynn and Ollie Cahill, who’ll possibly never hit a sweeter ball, let fly with a right-foot volley from almost 30 yards that flew into the roof of a stunned Shay Kelly net for a wonder goal.
The game boiled over four minutes before the break following several rash challenges in quick succession on the near touchline. A melee ensued with virtually all outfield players invovled in pushing and shoving as ref Eddie Barr tried to take control. When he soon did he booked St Pat’s skipper Trevor Croly to the angst of the home crowd and the St Pat’s bench. Stephen O’Flynn soon followed Croly into Barr’s book for a high challenge onthe home captain. City brought on Colin O’Brien for O’Flynn at the break and he almost made atelling early conribution; releasing Pat Morley with a super ball, but the veteran stirker’s chip from just outside the area was narrowly wide. Morley then missed a another great chance ten minutes later as Saints liveddangerously at the back.
Cahill skinned Croly down the left to cross. The ball ran for Morley at theback post but his scuffed shot beat Kelly only for Darragh Maguire to clearoff the line.
But Morley made amends as he set up Cahill who outpaced the home defence toshoot home their second goal on 71 minutes. Hope arrived quickly for St Patrick’s three minutes later when Derek Coughlan deflected a shot from Mbabazi into his own net following a Russell corner.
But, fittingly, Cahill had the final say two minutes from time as hecompleted his hat-trick; collecting Morley’s pass to slot home the simpliest of his three goals.
ST. PATRICK’S ATHLETIC: S. Kelly; Croly, C. Foley, Maguire, Burke; Livingstone, Griffin, Marney, Russell; L. Kelly, McCarthy. Subs: O’Keeffe for Croly (66 mins.), Holt for Burke (86 mins.).
CORK CITY: Devine; Daly, Coughlan, O’Rourke; Carey, Flanagan, O’Grady,Cahill, Horgan; Morley, O’Flynn. Subs: Napier for Daly (41 mins), O’Brien for O’Flynn (half-time).
Referee: E. Barr (Dublin).
