Cooke disappointed with point lost
Credit:
Drogheda manager Mick Cooke was left rueing some sloppy defending in
the wake of his side’s defeat to Dundalk in the first Louth derby of
the season. Drogheda led at half-time thanks to Dinny Corcoran’s
opportunistic strike after 24 minutes. But Dundalk turned it around
in the second half with goals from Colin Hawkins and an 85th minute
winner from Daniel Kearns.
Speaking to ExtraTime.ie after the game, Cooke admitted defensive lapses in the second half ultimately cost his side their first win of the season. He said: “After the effort we put in over 85 minutes, to concede a goal like that which was a schoolboy error is obviously very disappointing.”
Last season’s Monaghan United boss also believed his defence were to blame for Dundalk’s first goal when Lilywhites defender Colin Hawkins shrugged off the challenge of Alan McNally to head past Steven Trimble in the Drogs’ goal.
However despite the loss, Cooke was happy with the performance and believed his side deserved at least a point for their efforts: “I thought we were good overall and I thought we deserved something from the game.
He said: “There are more positives tonight than negatives. I thought overall we were competitive. We weren’t lacking in match fitness and we matched them all around the park. Overall I was very pleased with the performances of the eleven players”
On the same night, Monaghan United recorded a 2-1 victory over Wexford Youth which saw Cooke’s former team jump into second place in the First Division. The manager would be forgiven for wishing he had stayed with the Mons. However Cooke says he doesn’t have any misgiving about coming to Drogheda.
“No, I have no regrets whatsoever. I left that team and Monaghan are doing well and best of luck to them. But my thoughts now are with Drogheda Football Club. Since I’ve come here everyone has been right behind me. The players are right behind me and everyone is positive.”
When asked what he thought of the start Roddy Collins has made to life at Monaghan, Cooke was full of praise for his successor: “He’s doing a good job there. Roddy will be Roddy and obviously I wish Monaghan the best of luck. I’d like to see Monaghan in the Premier Division after all the work I did there.”
Speaking to ExtraTime.ie after the game, Cooke admitted defensive lapses in the second half ultimately cost his side their first win of the season. He said: “After the effort we put in over 85 minutes, to concede a goal like that which was a schoolboy error is obviously very disappointing.”
Last season’s Monaghan United boss also believed his defence were to blame for Dundalk’s first goal when Lilywhites defender Colin Hawkins shrugged off the challenge of Alan McNally to head past Steven Trimble in the Drogs’ goal.
However despite the loss, Cooke was happy with the performance and believed his side deserved at least a point for their efforts: “I thought we were good overall and I thought we deserved something from the game.
He said: “There are more positives tonight than negatives. I thought overall we were competitive. We weren’t lacking in match fitness and we matched them all around the park. Overall I was very pleased with the performances of the eleven players”
On the same night, Monaghan United recorded a 2-1 victory over Wexford Youth which saw Cooke’s former team jump into second place in the First Division. The manager would be forgiven for wishing he had stayed with the Mons. However Cooke says he doesn’t have any misgiving about coming to Drogheda.
“No, I have no regrets whatsoever. I left that team and Monaghan are doing well and best of luck to them. But my thoughts now are with Drogheda Football Club. Since I’ve come here everyone has been right behind me. The players are right behind me and everyone is positive.”
When asked what he thought of the start Roddy Collins has made to life at Monaghan, Cooke was full of praise for his successor: “He’s doing a good job there. Roddy will be Roddy and obviously I wish Monaghan the best of luck. I’d like to see Monaghan in the Premier Division after all the work I did there.”
About Sam Griffin
Sam joined Extratime for the 2011 season and is now the site's features editor. He is based in Dublin and covers all the clubs in the capital. He is also prone to the odd Drogheda … View Full Profile