Healy takes on relegation fight with Cork as Fenn departs his ‘dream job’

NEALE FENN insists he is ‘devastated’ that his dream job didn’t work out after his exit from Cork City by mutual consent.

The Leesiders reached an arrangement with Fenn to part company in an attempt to prevent their slide towards relegation with former Ireland international Colin Healy promoted from the youth set-up to take charge for the remainder of the season.

Fenn, a league winner with Cork as a player, has departed after a year in charge. Cork are bottom of the Premier Division with five games remaining. They are two points behind Finn Harps with a game in hand – against Dundalk next Tuesday.

Cork have taken nine points from 13 games and the endgame for Fenn was last weekend’s home defeat to St Patrick’s Athletic. He made a double substitution during the first half and one of the players he replaced, Daire O’Connor, left the club under a cloud this week. Cork decided that a change in the dugout was necessary.

“My dream job didn’t quite work out as well as I’d have hoped and I’m devastated I didn’t get to see the job through to the end,” said Fenn in a social media post, where he paid tribute to players, officials and fans.

He also expressed the wish that the ‘glory days’ will return to the club again.

Battle

However, Healy faces a serious battle to keep the club up after a rapid fall since double success in 2017. The club’s ownership position is also unclear after it emerged this week that members will vote later this month on whether to sell up to Grovemore – a company owned by Preston supremo and racehorse owner, Trevor Hemmings.

Cork needed help from Hemmings in the form of a deal on sell-on clauses with Alan Browne and Sean Maguire to escape from financial issues earlier this year. The deal with Grovemore would see the supporterrun operation sold for a nominal fee of €1 with the UK operation taking on the club’s liabilities.

They face Bohemians this evening (5.45) and Gypsies defender Dan Casey, who left Bohs for Cork in 2018 before returning to Dalymount Park after a year, is surprised at the Leesiders’ current situation.

“It’s sad to see where they are, but I feel they’ll have enough firepower to stay up,” said Casey. “It’s tough, as a club like Cork shouldn’t be at the bottom of the table, talking about relegation.

“Clubs often get a bounce under a new manager and this is an opportunity for those Cork players to make a statement about themselves. They have a point to prove, with the situation they are in, fighting for their lives.”