Cummins on target as Bohs crushed
CORK CITY 3 BOHEMIANS 0
DEFENDING SSE Airtricity League champions Cork City took just three minutes to kill off Bohemians’ token challenge with a routine home win at Turner’s Cross yesterday.
Goals from top-scorer Graham Cummins and Kieran Sadlier, via the penalty spot, had City two-up inside 21 minutes on a day when John Caulfield’s side took full advantage of the postponements of the Dundalk and Waterford fixtures because of the weather.
Cork were missing Alan Bennett and Steven Beattie and made two changes from the 1-1 draw with Limerick at the Market’s Field on Friday night, with Jimmy Keohane in for Gearóid Morrissey and Garry Buckley back from illness for Karl Sheppard.
Buckley missed the draw in Limerick with illness and was back in the centre of City’s midfield three but had to be substituted by Morrissey after 25 minutes.
Bohs’ boss Keith Long also made two changes from the 2-2 draw with Sligo Rovers, with Jonathan Lunney and Dylan Watts coming in for Paddy Kavanagh and Ian Morris.
But Bohs, too, were forced into an early change with Morris coming in for skipper Derek Pender who suffered a hamstring strain midway through the first half.
Bohs won at Turner’s Cross last season to end Cork’s incredible 22-match unbeaten start to their double-winning season but were quickly dismantled.
Cork took the lead with a lucky goal in the 18th minute when Keohane’s shot rebounded off Cummins to wrong foot Shane Supple and roll into the net.
It was Cummins’ sixth goal of the campaign and gave the home team just the boost they needed having not scored from open play in their last three matches.
It was 2-0 by the 21st minute when Rob Cornwall handled Conor McCormack’s cross and penalty expert Sadlier did the rest shooting high into the top right hand corner of the net.
It was Sadlier’s fourth successful spot kick of the season and his sixth league goal.
City might have been three goals up by the interval but Barry McNamee dragged his free kick from the edge of the box just wide of the far post nearing half-time.
Bohs rallied but desperate defence by Shane Griffin and Sean McLoughlin in quick succession denied Jonathan Lunney and Watts a comeback goal in the same attack after 52 minutes.
Bohs’ Morris did his share of defensive work too with a brave sliding block on the hour to deny Keohane a goal as the biting cold continued to occupy the big bank holiday crowd.
Cork added a third with four minutes left when Sheppard blasted in McNamee’s rolled free kick from the edge of the box.
CORK CITY (4-2-3-1): McNulty; McCarthy, Barry, McLoughlin, Griffin; McCormack (capt), Keohane; McNamee, Buckley (Morrissey 25), Sadlier (Sheppard 66); Cummins (Horgan 89). Subs not used: Adebayo-Rowling, Howard, O’Hanlon, Cherrie Scorers: Cummins 18, Sadlier 21, Sheppard 86. BOHEMIANS (4-5-1): Supple; Pender (capt, Morris 25), Cornwall, Casey, Leahy; Lunney, Buckley, Brennan, Watts (Corcoran 64), Moore; Stokes (Ward 70). Subs not used: Byrne, Gannon, Kavanagh, McCabe Referee: T Connolly (Dublin). Attendance: 4,265.