Corkbeg 2-3 City Wanderers
Corkbeg are left wondering how they didn’t claim all 3 points, when they welcomed City Wanderers to Whitegate on Saturday afternoon in the AUL Premier division.
Just one minute in, Corkbeg had their first opportunity, when Alan Horgan fired over from the edge of the box, which was a sign of things to come as the Beg would dominate for the opening half.
The home side had another opportunity soon after, when Ryan O Regan’s cross was directed on target by Alan Hogan at the back post, but his effort was straight at the Wanderer’s keeper.
In the tenth minute, Bobbi Donoghue picked up a loose pass out from the back by the away side, and he beat his man, but he scuffed his shot wide of the target. Seconds later, this time Donoghue headed just wide after a Horgan cross. Aaron Berry’s excellent delivery from a corner was met with a thundering header from Daniel Creedon, but his effort was cleared off the line.
The pressure was relentless, but finally Corkbeg took the lead in the 15th minute, when Hogan ran through one-on-one with the keeper, and he made no mistake as he slotted his chance into the bottom corner.
It took the away side 28 minutes for their first attempt on goal, which was a wayward free-kick that sailed harmlessly over the crossbar. On the half hour mark, Corkbeg doubled their lead, with Hogan getting his second from play, with a strike that can only be described as a cross, which happened to have found the top corner!
Nonetheless, it doubled Corkbeg’s lead.
Just before half-time, after some great skill in the middle of the park by Jordan Tynan, Berry had an effort on goal which was well saved by the City keeper. Moments later, Daragh O Mahony registered yet another attempt on target for Corkbeg, when he got on to O Regan’s looping header to the back post, but O Mahony was denied by the away keeper. It was 2-0 to the Beg at half time.
4 minutes into the second half, the away side got a goal back. An in-swinging free kick rattled off the crossbar and somehow, hit a City player and it rolled over the line to give them a lifeline. Despite the away side getting a goal back, it was the home side who still remained in control, and they nearly instantly replied with a goal, after a great run down the wing by O Regan, who in turn found Tynan inside the box, but his left-footed effort just crawled wide of the post.
O Regan headed narrowly wide after a Hogan cross just after the hour mark, as the Beg looked to regain their two goal lead.
Unfortunately, the opposite happened in the 70th minute. Another in-swinging free kick caused hassle, this time the ball agonisingly slipping through the hands of Ray Savage in goal, which levelled the game up.
Donoghue nearly restored the Beg’s lead in the 78th minute, after he headed on target, but again the keeper denied him.
85th minute and disaster struck for the Whitegate men, when a deep corner to the back post was headed by the unmarked man back across goal, where a City substitute had an open goal and headed it into the back of the net to see the away side go 3-2 up.
The Beg nearly levelled proceedings in the final few minutes, as Berry flicked an effort marginally wide of the post. It finished up 3-2 to the away side. Corkbeg truly deserved the 3 points, but came away with none on the day.
CORKBEG XI: R Savage, A Horgan, D Creedon, K Keneddy, C Cotter, J Tynan, A Berry, D O Mahony, R O Regan, B Donoghue & A Hogan
Subs: J O Hanlon for D O Mahony (62) & K Murphy for A Horgan (78).