To Win just Once

It’s a long time since fans of Cork City FC Women travelled to any game with expectation and belief that a result was possible, but that was the feeling I had yesterday as I walked through the gates of Fermoy FC’s magnificent Carrig Park facility. If we played well and had a bit of luck, this was a game that we could and should win, in the end however, the game was won purely on ability and tactical nous, lady luck, thankfully never entered the equation.

Football matches are as much about responding mentally to different situations as they are about ability, how do we deal with a poor offside call? Can we score when we are on top? Can we defend well for long periods when the opposition have their inevitable period of dominance? Each a unique in-game experience that will go a long way to deciding a winner, and yesterday CCFCW dealt with each, magnificently.

A 15^th minute controversial offside call which ruled out what would have been a Christina Dring opener, gave an insight as to what was to come. Mangan picked the ball up in midfield and played a ball wide to Atkinson on the right, who in turn drove into the box, forcing a save from DLR keeper, Auskalnyte, who had started in place of regular net minder, Eve Badana, which was then turned in by Dring. At the time, I felt that Dring was onside, watching it back I still feel that she was onside and the fact not one DLR player looked for an offside flag in the immediate aftermath, assures me that I am right, but I wasn’t holding the flag and the man who was, put it up and the goal was chalked out.

So how would we respond to that setback? Well five mins later, Atkinson again got in, from another brilliant Mangan through ball and perhaps might feel that she should have done better, but one touch too many, allowed Auskalntye to make a diving save at her feet. But we only had to wait another two minutes for the breakthrough, a DLR free kick in a dangerous position ended up in the hands of City goalkeeper, Abby McCarthy, and a mere fifteen seconds later, the ball was crossing the line at the other end of the pitch, to give city a deserved lead. A perfect goal kick, a touch to kill the ball stone dead, a turn and pass, from Fiana Bradley all that defy her mere sixteen years but give credence to all those days and nights, kicking a ball against the wall that ensures when you need them most, your touch and vision are second nature to you. Finally, a cool finish from Chloe Atkinson that gave her the goal, her performance merited and set City on the way to a deserved win.

DLR responded with a double substitution in the 30^th minute, with Doonan replacing the ineffective Donnelly up front and Brophy replacing Keogh at left back to try and alleviate the Atkinson onslaught, however three minutes later, City doubled their lead through Kiera Sena, who last week became the clubs youngest ever scorer aged 15 yrs 364 days and then doubled her career tally aged 16 yrs 6 days. A clearance from Ciara Mac forced Oleta Griffin into a mistake which set Sena free, but she still had plenty of work to do before finishing across the keeper, into the far corner, to double City’s lead and give them the dominance on the scoreboard that reflected their dominance on the pitch. DLR had come into the game on the back of three consecutive clean sheets, but City were giving them a torrid time and looked like they could score, every time they got the ball wide to Sena and Atkinson.

The second half proved a different affair, with DLR on the front foot from the off, thanks in no small part to Doonan’s ability to hold the ball up and get them further up the pitch, her knack of putting her body between defender and ball and thereby earning DLR free kicks in the city half, proving especially beneficial. Eventually her efforts  paid off when she earned her side a penalty in the 55^th minute, when for the only time in the game, DLR got the city defence turned and had Doonan running in behind, only for Abby McCarthy in the City goal to bring her down and see Katie Malone convert the spot kick, to bring DLR right back into the game.

The next twenty minutes saw DLR continue their domination of the game, Alix Mendez was booked for bringing down the aforementioned Doonan and the introduction of Freya Roche to play in front of Aoife Brophy on a new look left hand side for DLR, gave City lots of problems down that side but to be fair Alix Mendez at right back and the centre back pairing of Ciara Mac and Jesse Mendez, were well able to deal with what was thrown at them, all the while, Shaunagh McCarthy had the other side locked down from her left back position. The key to City’s defensive stability during this time, was an ability to ensure the game was played in front of the back four, and for all her success in dropping short and linking up play, Doonan wasn’t really a threat to run in behind and with no runners from midfield, looking to get beyond the DLR front woman, the city defence looked relatively comfortable in dealing with what DLR had to throw at them. An assured performance from Abby McCarthy in sweeping up and dealing with any balls that did evade the back four, added to her willingness to come and claim a number of set pieces in a dominant fashion, all ensured that the longer the game went on, the more assured one became that DLR were unlikely to score again.

The DLR period of domination ended on 75 minutes when Danielle Burke and Lauren Walsh were introduced for the two goal scorers, Chloe Atkinson and Kiera Sena. This saw City move Alix Mendez to the right of midfield, with Lauren Walsh slotting into her right back role, while Burke joined Eva Mangan and the earlier introduced Kelly Leahy (for Niamh Cotter) in a midfield three, that then saw Christina Dring move up top and Fiana Bradley move out to the left wing. Suddenly Mendez was pushing Brophy deeper and getting City higher up the pitch, while on the other side Bradley’s quick feet and football intelligence were once again causing DLR problems. That final fifteen minutes were City’s most comfortable of the second half and while the changes made by DLR certainly swung the game in their favour for a thirty-minute period in the second half, Danny Murphy’s changes then swung it back in City’s favour once again for those last fifteen minutes.

City now travel to Limerick to face Treaty United next Saturday at 5pm, you have to go back to the 26^th of September 2020 during the covid apocalypse to find the last time city won back-to-back games, that day they followed up a 2-1 home defeat of DLR (I know I know) with a 2-1 away win against Wexford in Ferrycarrig Park. The Saw Doctors like to sing,

To win just once,

to win just once,

that would be enough.

To be honest ive always thought the Saw Doctors sang a load of bollocks, I for one, never want to see that N17 again and its not enough to win just once, especially when the opportunity to go back-to-back, is staring you in the face for the first time in three seasons.

Will you be there to see it happen?