CORK SHOW SIGNS OF CRACKING IN TITLE RACE
CORK CITY showed true grit to salvage a point seven minutes from time against St Patrick’s Athletic, but it’s well and truly advantage Dundalk in the race for the Premier Division title. Josh O’Hanlon cancelled out Dean Clarke’s 55thminute opener for the visitors and the champions have now played two games more than Stephen Kenny’s side but are level on 67 points. Should Dundalk beat Sligo Rovers at the Showgrounds tonight and win their remaining game in hand they will have a six-point lead going into the final straight. Permutations aside, the simple fact here is that Cork were unable to bounce back from their Europa League exit to Rosenborg earlier in the week. Even with top scorer Graham Cummins back in the starting XI, the home side were sluggish and lacking ideas. Liam Buckley’s charges came close to hitting the front after 33 minutes when a powerful drive from goal scorer Clarke was pushed away by Mark McNulty, with Ryan Brennan firing the rebound over the crossbar. The Leesiders, who had won the three league clashes between the clubs this season, went behind when a Conan Byrne free kick on the right found Clarke whose first shot was saved by McNulty only for the persistent forward to fire home the loose ball. They almost scored a second shortly afterwards when a downwards header from Byrne was kept out by the diving McNulty. Cork struck for a late equaliser when two substitutes combined, Gearoid Morrissey sending in a great cross for O’Hanlon to power home a header.
CORK CITY: McNulty; Beattie, Delaney, McLoughlin, Griffin; McCormack (Morrissey 53); Sheppard, Keohane (O’Hanlon 63), Buckley, Sadlier; Cummins.
Scorer: O’Hanlon 83 ST PATRICK’S ATHLETIC: B Clarke; Toner, Desmond, Madden, Bermingham; Byrne, Clifford, Lennon, R Brennan (K Brennan 89), D Clarke (Markey 73) Campion (Turner 70). Scorer: D Clarke 55 Booked: B Clarke Referee: R Hennessy (Limerick).