Curran Cracks Crap City

Cork City’s season returned to where it began on Friday night, making the relatively short trip to the 26,000 capacity Thomond Park for their third and final game of the season against Munster rivals Limerick FC, with both sides looking nervously over their shoulders at the relegation battle raging below.

Despite leaving go three strikers in the form of Denis Behan, Danny Furlong and Daryl Kavanagh earlier in the week, City manager Tommy Dunne named a 4-4-2 formation with youngster Danny Morrissey and loan signing Ciarán Kilduff leading the line in a side which also saw Garry Buckley partner Dan Murray in City’s back four following Kalen Spillane's sending off last week. Kilduff has made a big impact since signing for the club last month, and he had the Rebel Army’s first chance early on. Ian Turner swung in a good ball, but stretching the Shamrock Rovers striker couldn't get the contact he wanted and put the ball over.

The away side were most certainly the brighter of the two teams in the opening exchanges and Kilduff had another few half-chances with the away support in fine voice. It was the home team who had the best chance in the opening exchanges though, against the run of play. A fine ball from the right hand side by Danny Galbraith picked out Craig Curran at the back post, the Scot got a touch with his head which looked like the deadlock breaker, but Mark McNulty had other ideas, spectacularly flying to his right hand side and getting enough of a palm to deflect the ball onto his right hand post and away from danger.

Barry Ryan matched McNulty’s exploits at the other end, doing very well to get strong hands behind Gearóid Morrissey’s rasping effort and turn it over the crossbar. It was a war of the goalkeepers in the first half, as McNulty again displayed his agility to deny Curran, this leaping off the ground and twisting in the air to enable himself to palm the Scot’s powerful shot out for a corner.

The Ballincollig native was helpless a few moments later however, as Stephen Folan saw himself in space. The former Newcastle United defender tried his luck with a long range effort which saw McNulty flat-footed having seen the ball deflect off Curran and into the net. As Folan wheeled away to celebrate what appeared a fortunate opener he turned back to see the away net minder setup a free-kick, Curran adjudged to have intentionally deflected the ball with his arm by referee Neil Doyle and the official was most certainly not the most popular man in Thomond as he put his whistle to his lips once more, this time to signal the end of the first half.

City didn't quite start the second period with as much gusto as the first, though a tangle between Danny Murphy and Shane Duggan prevented the latter a chance at the goal. A few minutes later the deadlock was finally broken courtesy of the unrelenting Curran. The Limerick striker found himself in space down the left hand side after a fantastic touch, he then pushed the ball ahead of himself before opening up his right foot and curling a fantastic finish past McNulty, who this time was powerless to keep the ball out. Curran was in flying form at this stage, and had a shot whistle over the crossbar a mere two minutes later with no doubts as to who was now in the ascendancy.

The Blues’ number 19 looked dangerous all evening, and after a Dave O’Leary cross wasn't cleared properly, he again had an effort, which thankfully for Tommy Dunne’s men was scuffed left and wide. Danny Galbraith then was the next Limerick man to try his luck, but his shot was wild under a sky getting wilder. The home side were only getting stronger, and doubled their advantage after the hour mark. With City piling players forward in search of an equaliser, Sean Kelly picked up the ball outside the Blues’ penalty area. His burst from the back saw City at sixes and sevens, and the defender laid it on to Joe Gamble who teed up Rory Gaffney; despite yet another brilliant save, Kelly was on hand to power home the second with City players stuck on their own goal-line.

It couldn't be said that the second goal was rough justice for the away side, who despite early momentum were a shadow of the team from the previous period, and were now facing yet another long trip home. Limerick didn't let up though, and clever work from O’Leary on the right side, slipping a neat through ball to Gamble, saw the former Cork City midfielder force another fine low save by City’s number one. Gamble turned provider a few minutes later, teeing up Curran for a volley which McNulty comfortably save, and a poor touch denied Gamble a goal from a fantastic through ball by Stephen Bradley

Things went from bad to worse for the Leesiders, as with five minutes to go Daryl Horgan received his marching orders from referee Doyle for pushing Kelly after a dangerous tackle from behind. This sparked a half-way line melee which saw Kilduff and McNulty booked, Kelly also seeing yellow for the original foul. But as time ticked towards a conclusion, City found a goal out of thin air, quite literally. A long ball by Danny Murphy found Ciarán Kilduff with his back to goal, he turned Stephen Folan in the Limerick backline and under pressure was assisted by Danny Morrissey, who picked up the breaking ball and smashed a shot off the underside of the crossbar and into the net.

City pushed on for the unlikeliest of equalisers, and there were calls for handball when Gearóid Morrissey drilled a volley off Robbie Williams, before sub Stephen Kenny saw his follow up blocked down similarly. In the end that was as close as the away side got to securing a point. Stuart Taylor’s men ran out the additional four minutes and were crowned the victors of the Munster derby for the fourth time in five competitive fixtures.

For the Rebel Army there’s no letting up, a crucial league game against Bohemians next Friday will cap off a week which sees City battling for a place in the next round of the cup on Monday at 5PM, and entertaining their second Premiership club of the season in the shape of West Brom the following evening. While the home side will go into next week's big game against UCD full of confidence.