I’M READY FOR WAR
A big task but Caulfield hopes to scare Poles
THERE’S a World Cup semi on but that won’t stop five and a half thousand of the Rebel Army hitting a heaving Turner’s Cross tonight.
Legia Warsaw arrived by the Lee yesterday ahead of an early evening kickaround at the rickety old ground.
It has been modernised in recent years but not enough to make it feel like home for the Polish champions.
But to put Cork’s task in context, Legia beat Celtic 4-1 in the Champions League third qualifying round four years ago – only to lose out for playing an ineligible sub in the second leg.
And given they have an annual €60million budget, City boss John Caulfield is realistic about his side’s chances.
“They can leave two Polish internationals, Michal Pazdan and Artur Jedrzejczyk, at home but if they were playing Celtic they probably wouldn’t,” said Caulfield.
“We understand that. We know we’re up against it but it would be terrible if the performance didn’t go well.
“But you’re optimistic, it’s still
11 versus 11 with the environment of the being two yards from sideline.
“They’re used to playing in stadiums that are big. We’ve seen it with Hacken, with Genk, there were times they were uncomfortable.
“If we start well, if we defend really well, you never know. If you concede a goal, it’s going to be tough. That’s the challenge of Europe and why we’re looking forward to it.”
Caulfield isn’t surprised with the take-up of tickets, despite the alternative viewing on offer in Russia. “It’s Cork,” wall the smiled Caulfield. “It’s hard to explain but everyone follows all the games. You can see the fans at the hurling, they were all in Thurles last week and they’re all following us.
“If we were struggling, we wouldn’t have sell-outs. That’s the reality. Cork likes to follow successful teams, that’s the psyche.
“I always knew that if we could get the team challenging for and winning trophies we’d get the crowds.
“The disappointing thing in the bigger picture is that you’d love it if we had a real industry over here.
“It’s very hard when you’re losing key guys every year and you have to rebuild. But that’s the way we do it, we’ve no choice, that’s our league.”