Cork City -v- Bohemians

• Alan Smith
• Thu, May 28 2009


A bumper crowd is expected as top-of-the-table Cork City welcome second place Bohemians to Turner’s Cross on Friday night (7.45pm). A win for the Rebels will give them a six point gap at the top but if they lose Bohs will regain top spot, albeit on goal difference. The home team come into the game in a magnificent run of form, with 28 points from 30, and they’ve already gotten the better of the champions on one occasion this season - Davin O’Neill scoring the winner at Dalymount last month. Bohs’ meanwhile have been out of sorts lately and Pat Fenlon would have considered himself very luck to keep the deficit to just three points after their last gasp victory at home to Drogheda last weekend.

Anticipation ahead of the game is huge and a bumper crowd is expected at the game. Cork boss Paul Doolin was keen to highlight how important a large attendance is - and not just to give the club some much needed income. “There is nothing better for the players than a big crowd cheering the team on. You could see the difference against Derry when we had over four thousand people in the ground, the atmosphere was excellent and it really added to the occasion. I would hope that we get an even bigger crowd against Bohemians on Friday, as it would give everyone a big lift. Neither team will win or lose the league tomorrow night, but it is great to have a big game like this to look forward to. Our form this season has been fantastic. We have encountered some difficulties, but to produce the sort of run that we have is really excellent. There is a long way to go, but to have secured 28 points out of a possible 30 is really fantastic.” said the Extratime.ie Manager of the Month winner for April.

Pat Fenlon also underlined the importance of tomorrow night’s tie. “It’s a good place to go and play football, with a big crowd, two good teams and we always look forward to going there. It’s a big game and we’ll definitely be looking for something from the game.” A defeat for the champions would leave them six points behind, though Fenlon was eager to play down the consequences of a possible loss. “Six points isn’t too far back, we’ve still to play them twice more after Friday, so there’s a lot of football still to be played,” he added.

Bohs’ started well on the road, with nine points gained against Dundalk, Drogheda, and Galway, though they’ve since drawn against Sligo and had successive defeats to Derry City and Shamrock Rovers. Cork have been excellent at home, with five wins from six. While they’ve only scored six goals and 1-0 has become a sort of trademark for the Leesiders, it’s the defence which has put them to the summit and they’ve just conceded twice at Turner’s Cross so far.

The Leesiders may have started poorly back in March but they have been superb since. It is now up to themselves to keep the run going and Doolin was eager to stress the need to focus on their own performances, while further ackinowledging the need for patience as the team haven't been together that long. “I just want to concentrate on ourselves. Bohs may have had an edge on us going into our previous meeting, as they had been together as a group for a couple of seasons, while we were still getting to know each other as a team, but we have another few weeks behind us now and our form has improved. This squad is still developing, and maybe it has gelled quicker than people might have expected, but that is down to the work the players have put in."

Pat Fenlon will be without the services of Jason McGuinness who is suspended. Mark Rossiter and Glen Crowe will miss out with hamstring injuries, while Owen Heary will travel but faces a late fitness test prior to the game. Cork, meanwhile, have the influential Billy Dennehy back to fitness and he may fit straight in on the left wing. Pat Sullivan serves a one game ban, while Robert Mezeckis is ruled out after a reoccurrence of the Achilles injury which kept him out for most of the season so far. Neal Horgan is fit again and will start at right back due to the absence of Sullivan but Davin O’Neill, scorer of the winner back at the beginning of April, and Shane Duggan remain sidelined with long-term injuries. Cork are 13/10 favourites with the bookmakers and Bohs are 9/5, with the draw at 2/1. Referee for the game is Mr Dave McKeon.

Extratime.ie Prediction: The two sides will be very evenly matched and the large crowd expected should not be disappointed. An entertaining draw; 1-1.