SEALED WITH A CHRIS
LARGE parts of Cork were plunged into darkness 15 minutes from the end of this explosive top-of-the-table clash after a major power outage in the city.
But while Turner’s Cross was spared that particular drama, the lights had already gone out on Cork City’s slender hopes of retaining their title as they slumped to a third league defeat on the spin for the first time since 2003.
The faltering champions were undone by a third minute Chris Shields goal that means Dundalk – with a nine-point lead – can all but secure the title with a win over Derry City on Tuesday.
And the Rebels’ misery was compounded when manager John Caulfield – taunted with a ‘Tick Tock Caulfield’ banner from the away fans – was dismissed at half-time for a Shields 4 tunnel bust-up with Dundalk’s assistant boss Vinny Perth.
“There was a few people involved with Dundalk who wouldn’t have been involved in the game tonight and there was something going on with one of our players,” claimed Rebels assistant John
Cotter.
“We tried to defuse the situation and we got our players into the dressing room and all we know is that a couple of minutes before we were going back out John was sent off.
“I’m not going to sit here and name names. That’s all I saw to be honest. It’s something we’ll deal with later in the week.”
Dundalk boss Stephen Kenny said: “I’d be lying if I said I saw anything.”
Caulfield watched the second half from behind the glass in the PA box (inset) located high in the main stand and he remained there when the Dundalk players celebrated wildly in front of their travelling fans. Striker Pat Hoban was handed a scarf by one of the supporters and he raced over to the empty goal and tied it around one of the posts, much to the delight of the raucous Lilywhite faithful. Caulfield watched it all unfold and by the time he reached his team’s dressing room, all he could hear was rival players belting out Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds in the room next door.
“Every little thing is gonna be alright,” they sang, and it’s hard to argue with the point as they close in on a fourth league title in five years under Kenny.
“The last couple of years we hadn’t been able to win here at all so it’s an important win,” said Kenny. “We’ve been so consistent. Prolific. We’ve been very convincing.”
A win for Cork would probably have just prolonged the agony. And the attendance of just 4,310 – well down on what might have been – suggested the home fans were already resigned to their fate.
Whatever hopes of redemption they carried into the night were blown out of the water after just three minutes.
Shields powered into space before laying off to Hoban who took a touch and turned inside Sean Mcloughlin before finding Shields again who continued his run.
His shot clipped Conor Mccarthy to leave Mark Mcnulty wrongfooted and the Dundalk ace was a little wrong-footed himself in his celebration as he caught his studs in the turf and landed in a heap.