SEAGULLS TOPPLED
Lack of cohesion dooms Bray Wanderers to defeat
BRAY WANDERERS DUNDALK 0 3
A third place finish looked like the best that Bray Wanderers can hope for after they were comprehensively dismantled by Dundalk on Friday evening.
Now, however, nobody knows what the future holds for the Seagulls.
It was a truly miserable evening for the Seagulls where their lack of cohesion and chemistry was matched by the apparent lack of forethought displayed in the press release issued during the half-time break.
Victory on Friday would have seen the Co. Wicklow club chomp Dundalk’s lead down to four points in second place. It was hoped that Bray would prove they would that life after Dylan Connolly would be sweet but it turned sour very early on.
The Bray Wanderers clean sheet lasted a mere 100 seconds. It sourced from a Bray corner – Patrick McEleney broke up the field and found Michael Duffy. He looked set to furrow on but instead released Robbie Benson who sidestepped Peter Cherrie’s challenge and stroked it to the empty net.
Michael Duffy then had two attempts at controlling a crossfield ball but he almost bagged a second as his swerving shot with his instep whisked a couple of yards wide od Cherrie’s far post.
Bray looked frail and completely overawed in the early stages but they should have been level in the 16th minute. Gary McCabe swung a corner in towards the near post and Anthony Flood stole ahead of his man but he miscued his header and it looped harmlessly onto the roof of the net.
Dundalk fans then endured a miserable and far too frequent sight as their skipper Stephen O’Donnell gingerly departed the action after just 20 minutes but it didn’t slow Dundalk down as they’d doubled up within six minutes.
It was a beautiful goal and one that Bray were unwittingly forced to watch and admire as Jamie McGrath and Chris Shields combined to tee up Benson for a first-time finish after one-touch football all the way.
Visiting goalkeeper Gary Rogers was forced into action in the 37th minute. Aaron Greene’s free kick was cleared as far as Salmon and his snapshot was spilled by Rogers but he wasn’t punished as Benson scrambled the ball behind at the expense of a corner.
Greene then summed up his side’s woeful opening half performance as he lost the ball to his man before shoving him over in clumsy frustration.
Anthony Flood finally showed a bit of fight for Bray at the beginning of the second period but unfortunately it was aimed at Niclas Vemmelund which lead to the pair rubbing foreheads and earned Flood a booking.
Despite the last sunrays of June beaming down on them, the Lilywhites didn’t have to break sweat as they trotted around the Carlisle Grounds dominating all before them.
They decided to add a third in the 63rd minute. With Mark Salmon laying prone, many play- ers seemed to think referee Rob Rogers would blow up to allow treatment.
He didn’t though and Patrick McEleney took matters into his own hand as he lobbed the switched-off Cherrie from 30 yards.
Salmon would not recover from that knock and would be replaced by Darragh Noone but at 0-3 down and absolutely no foothold in the game, there was nothing Noone nor fellow sub Ger Pender could do to alter the outcome.
If Dundalk didn’t have European football on their mind, they may well have went for the jugular and racked up an embarrassing scoreline for the home side but Stephen Kenny’s men were content to go through the motions for the final third of the contest.
Wanderers must now stew over this result until July 14th when they welcome runaway league leaders Cork City to the Carlisle Grounds.
Bray Wanderers: 1. Peter Cherrie; 8. Keith Buckley, 2. Hugh Douglas, 4. Conor Kenna, 19. Kevin Lynch; 3. John Sullivan,
8. Mark Salmon; 7. Ryan Brennan, 11. Gary McCabe, 9. Aaron Greene; 20. Anthony Flood. Subs: Ger Pender for Flood (65); Darragh Noone for Salmon (65); Jason Marks for McCabe (81). Not used: Lee Steacy, Alan Kehoe, Conor Earley, Jamie Aherne.
Dundalk: 1. Gary Rogers; 2. Sean Gannon, 3. Brian Gartland,
19. Niclas Vemmelund, 14. Dane Massey; 7. Michael Duffy, 6. Stephen O’Donnell, 18. Robbie Benson, 10. Jamie McGrath; 11. Patrick McEleney; 9. David McMillan. Subs: Chris Shields for O’Donnell (20); John Mountney for McGrath (58); Ciaran Kilduff for McMillan (80). Not used: Gabriel Sava, Paddy Barrett, Sean Hoare, Thomas Stewart.
Referee: Robert Rogers.