League Report: Cobh Ramblers 1 - 0 Waterford

Cobh Ramblers recorded their first win over Waterford since 2017 after a second-half Wilson Waweru strike gifted them all three points at St Colman’s Park.

Waterford had won their last three games before the summer break, but an excellent Cobh defence and some late drama denied them a result on the road.

There were high expectations for a goal-fest, with The Blues notching sixteen goals in their last three fixtures, but the anticipated attacking force wasn’t on display, especially in the first-half.

It was rather quiet game to begin with, as both teams took their share of possession and had equal chances at taking the lead.

Waterford’s Roland Idowu had the first good chance with twenty minutes on the clock, but his low shot was saved calmly by goalkeeper Lee Steacy. Top goalscorer Ronan Coughlan took a similar shot soon after, but the attempt was driven wide.

Minutes later, Cobh forward Waweru’s effort hit the crossbar after he found himself alone up front, with the Waterford defence slow to react to his quick movement in front of goal.

Connor Parsons was a stand-out in terms of danger and the Waterford midfielder forced Cobh defender Charlie Lyons to make a fantastic clearance off the line as his low shot almost ran into the net.

As half-time approached, there was a lull in the game with little to account for in front of goal, with Cobh’s Luke Desmond making the final attempt before the whistle blew.

His brave run down the line and subsequent cross made the Waterford defence sweat, but the ball was cleared before any of the home side could jump to take a half-time lead.

The Rams had an unfortunate start to the second-half as top goalscorer Jack Doherty was forced off with an ankle injury.

The sudden departure of their number seven didn’t affect the side too much however, as Waweru made it 1-0 just eight minutes into the half.

The goal was initiated by skipper Jason Abbott who grasped possession near the halfway line from a Lee Steacy clearance before dipping it forward to his teammate.

Waweru took control with ease and slid the ball from the right into the net after Waterford’s Paul Martin came off his line in a bid to stop the shot.

The defence couldn’t get to the open goal in time to avoid the ball from rolling over the line as Waweru, on loan from Galway United, claimed his fifth of the season.

Waterford were forced into immediate panic mode as both Ryan Burke and Coughlan tried to shoot but couldn’t connect well to the ball. The latter has claimed an impressive 25 league goals this season but was rather quiet on the attack in St. Colman’s Park.

It continued to be a mixed half as both teams had chances to add to the scoreboard, Cobh’s Tiernan O’Brien with the best effort with thirty minutes left on the clock after getting his head to a fantastic Darragh O’Connell cross but the attempt went inches over the crossbar.

Cobh defended impeccably in the dying stages of the half, especially Lyons who produced three successive blocks as Keith Long’s men pressed to get an equaliser, but there was controversy for the away side in added time when an offside call was made against them.

Captain Niall O’Keeffe drove a long low shot through the Cobh defence with just seconds to spare but the referee ruled it out, despite desperate pleas from the away side and a lengthy consultation with linesman Trevor Cotter.

The full-time whistle was a welcome one for home side, along with the news of Treaty United’s 2-0 win over Athlone Town, who were level on points with Cobh heading into this fixture.

Tonight’s results see Cobh move up to third in the table with Waterford now extending their points difference to Galway by 13, making it an almost impossible task to snatch the title from them.

Cobh lie ten points behind The Blues and travel to Athlone next Friday as Waterford welcome Finn Harps to the RSC.

Cobh Ramblers: Lee Steacy; Justin Eguaibor, Brendan Frahill, Charlie Lyons, Darragh O'Sullivan Connell; Jason Abbott, Luke Desmond (Charlie O'Brien 77), Tiernan O'Brien, Pierce Phillips (Callum Stringer 76); Jack Doherty (Conor Drinan 49), Wilson Waweru (Jake Hegarty 84).

Subs not used: Darragh Burke, Issa Kargbo, Michael McCarthy, David Bosnjak.

Booked: Tiernan O'Brien (31), Charlie Lyons (68), Jason Abbott (80), Callum Stringer (86).

Waterford: Paul Martin; Ryan Burke, Killian Cantwell, Niall O'Keeffe; Barry Baggley, Roland Idowu, Eddie Nolan (Romeo Akachukwu 84), Tunmise Sobowale (Shane Griffin 71); Ronan Coughlan, Thomas Oluwa (Wassim Aouachria 67), Connor Parsons.

Subs not used: Matthew Connor, Harvey Warren, Ronan Mansfield, Darragh Power, Mikey Carroll, Dean Larkin.

Booked: Ryan Burke (90), Connor Parsons (90).

Referee: Ray Matthews

Attendance: 950.

extratime.com Player of the Match: Charlie Lyons (Cobh Ramblers).