CITY SLICKERS
Caulfield hails his men as title is secured
Cork City 0 Derry C 0
CORK CITY were crowned champions last night and John Caulfield hailed his Rebels for setting ‘an incredible standard’ throughout the year. The Leesiders were held to a scoreless draw at home by Derry City but a point was all they needed to reclaim the trophy after a 12-year absence. And their former star striker Seanie Maguire – now at Preston – joined in the party from afar, tweeting: “Couldn’t be happier. From the staff to the fans, enjoy the celebrations.” But Caulfield admitted it was a relief to get over the line after just two wins in their last nine league games. “I didn’t think it would take two 0-0 draws to get
HOURS after pulling a section of it down because of storm damage, Cork City raised the roof at Turner’s Cross by finally clinching the league title. Their problems in front of goal since Sean Maguire left for Preston in July have been well documented – and haunted them here again. For the second game running, John Caulfield’s charges muddled their way to a scoreless draw – but this time it was all they needed. Falling over the finishing line was not how the Rebels envisaged things earlier in the season but the last three months – in the league at least - have been a struggle. Yet it shouldn’t detract from the opening two thirds of the season when this team pulverised opponents and steamrolled their way to victory. And this point for the Candystripes cemented their own ticket to Europe as Bray Wanderers can no longer catch them for fourth. Like they did away to Bohemians on Friday, Cork started well and were proactive in the opening exchanges without truly testing Kenny Shiels’ men. But therein lay the frustration because that never changed for the duration with the Rebels huffing and puffing – not to mention breathing a sigh of relief on a couple of occasions. Derry were happy to sit and soak what came their way and packed a punch on the counter with Barry Mcnamee driving them forward when afford the space. And from one such move, he teed up Rory Patterson whose wicked shot from distance worried goalkeeper Mark Mcnulty. Then, from a corner, Harry Monaghan ought to have buried a free header from six yards when Shane Griffin’s marking left a lot to be desired. Cork, whose lack punch in the final third allowed the visiting defenders grown in stature, were struggling to catch the breaks. Gearoid Morrissey blazed over from distance and even though a draw would suffice, the Shed End were growing noticeably restless. Caulfield was racing down the sideline when appealing for a penalty just before the break but Dean Jarvis’ shoulder on Garry Buckley was deemed fair game. Whatever foothold Derry had garnered, they surrendered in the second-half. Cork still lacked conviction and rarely looked like scoring, but they bossed the ball. Steven Beattie’s enforced withdrawal with 20 minutes to go didn’t aid their cause but even before that, you sensed the hopes were happy to adopt a ‘hold what we have’ attitude. That’s not to say they abandoned all hope of a winner. Buckley was ideally placed to score had Karl Sheppard’s squared ball in the box not been intercepted and hacked clear late on. Ultimately it didn’t matter, and nor did Cork’s troubles of recent weeks. They are champions of Ireland and nobody can deny it is deserved.