League Preview: Bray Wanderers -v- Cork City

Action from the last time Cork City travelled to take on Bray - the scoreless game in April 2021

Action from the last time Cork City travelled to take on Bray - the scoreless game in April 2021 Credit: Timmy Keane (ETPhotos)

BRAY WANDERERS

Bray’s performances as we enter the business end of the season have been patchy at best, with two wins, two losses and a draw in their last five outings.

Despite this inconsistency they have still managed to remain a live contender for one of the promotion playoff spots with four games remaining in the First Division.

Galway United look like they will make a play-off spot, so the remaining three slots from the second flight are likely to be filled by UCD, Treaty United and Bray Wanderers. 

However, Athlone Town and Bray’s opponents this weekend Cork City can still mathematically make it but it is highly unlikely that either will generate enough momentum to dislodge the three teams ahead of them.

The Seagulls game on Friday night against City will be their second last home fixture of the season (they have Cabinteely at home on Fri Oct 15th) so they will be anxious to use home advantage to make sure they pick up three points before they face a daunting away trip to second placed Galway United the following weekend.

They took the lead in the 49th minute through a Ryan Graydon goal in their 2-1 away win at Cobh Ramblers last weekend only to concede a penalty which Jason Abbott converted in the 67th minute. That penalty resulted in a red card for Dan Jones who will now be missing for the Cork City game. They secured victory with a Richie O’Farrell winner in the 70thminute and bagged the three points. 

They now sit in fifth place on 36 points heading into this crunch tie, knowing that anything less than three points could seriously jeopardise their objective of making the promotion play offs.

CORK CITY

Cork City’s failure to pick up more than one point in their last two outings has more or less put paid to any faint hopes they had of making one of the promotion play-off spots, and while still mathematically possible they realistically look like finishing in a mid-table position by the end of the season.



The 2-0 loss at home to Shelbourne was followed last weekend by a scoreless draw away to Treaty United and they face another tough encounter this weekend when they travel to the Carlisle Grounds in Bray on Friday night.

They also have a very tough end of season set of fixtures that makes it difficult for them to be considered top four contenders, for as well as Bray this weekend, they also have to face promotion chasers UCD and Galway United in two of their last four matches.

Colin Healy, manager of Cork City, spoke to the media during the week and said “It will be difficult to make the top four at this stage being realistic about it. We also know Bray are a good side but we go up there as a group of professional players and coaches and hopefully do the job and come out with the three points.”

He went on to add “in the last game against Bray here at Turners Cross we were 2-0 up but let them back into the game and it ended up a 2-2 draw. Our players have learnt lessons from that game and over the last month or two have eradicated that aspect out of their game to a certain extent.”

Healy had some good news on the injury front, with Gearóid Morrissey, Josh Honahan and Jonas Hakkinen all back in training but he also said that it would be another two weeks before Steven Beattie is back training.

Referee: Michael Connolly



MATCH STATS

Cork City are unbeaten in their last eight games against Bray Wanderers and the Seagulls had lost six successive games to Cork City in all competitions before this season.

Bray’s last win over the Cork side was in 2014 when they won 4-1, their goals coming from Jason Marks, Dylan Connolly, John Sullivan and Ger Pender.

The two games between these sides this season both ended in draws, a scoreless draw in Bray back in April followed by a 2-2 result down in Turners Cross in July.

Cian Murphy netted both Cork goals in the last match while Darren Craven and Andrew Quinn helped salvage the draw for Glen Cronin’s team.

BETTING

Bray 19/20; Draw 11/5; Cork City 13/5

PREDICTION

Bray Wanderers 2 - 1 Cork City

Bray Wanderers

Injured: None

Doubtful: None

Suspended: Dan Jones

Cork City

Injured: Steven Beattie

Doubtful: Gearóid Morrissey, Josh Honahan, Jonas Hakkinen

Suspended: None

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