Cork City FC

kcb

Worztron wrote: »

I wonder if 9 league wins in a row would also be a LOI record.

I believe it is.

There should be a massive travelling support for Bohemians away on Friday. I wouldn't worry about the record but it would be great to get 11 wins from 11 before the summer.

Problems could be ahead if Maguire goes in July. Delaney is also due to return to his club in England in July.

overmantle

kcb wrote: »

I believe it is.

There should be a massive travelling support for Bohemians away on Friday. I wouldn't worry about the record but it would be great to get 11 wins from 11 before the summer.

Problems could be ahead if Maguire goes in July. Delaney is also due to return to his club in England in July.

That's the difficulty with the season being different in League of Ireland.

.red.

I went to the cross the cross for the Derry game, first time in a long time. Really enjoyed it, especially they last 30/35 minutes. My young lad did too and wants to go again.
Dunno if it was just me but the keeper didn't fill me with confidence, he left one ball bounce over him which could have been costly, spilled one easy looking ball and then there was the shot from outside the box. Did he get a touch? I thought he did but probably didn't know much about it, lads around me thought he didn't.
That could have made it 3-3 but at the same time cork city looked like they had another bit to give if needed.
Good game tho and I look forward to going again.

kcb

McNulty got a touch to that piledriver from outside the box alright. It was actually a very good save from a great shot.

Wilberto

Nults was definitely not himself on Friday. Handling the ball like a hot potato all day.

He's normally far more assured than that though so hopefully it was just a once off. And, tbf, we still won 3-0 so he picked a good time to have a dodgy game! :pac:

hufpc8w3adnk65

WGTWTL

Wilberto

It took me far too long to decipher that! :pac:

Far longer than it should have.


Hopefully you're right though.

ShamoBuc

MrMac84 wrote: »

WGTWTL

Bit early ....but....it really has to be this year we do it.
Holding onto Seanie for the full season could be the deciding factor.

Pablo Escobar

.red. wrote: »

I went to the cross the cross for the Derry game, first time in a long time. Really enjoyed it, especially they last 30/35 minutes. My young lad did too and wants to go again.
Dunno if it was just me but the keeper didn't fill me with confidence, he left one ball bounce over him which could have been costly, spilled one easy looking ball and then there was the shot from outside the box. Did he get a touch? I thought he did but probably didn't know much about it, lads around me thought he didn't.
That could have made it 3-3 but at the same time cork city looked like they had another bit to give if needed.
Good game tho and I look forward to going again.

2 uncharacteristic mistakes from him. He has over 100 clean sheets for City now and is the most able keeper with the ball at his feet that I've seen. It's a very under-rated trait in a keeper and is often cited as the reason Shay Given never got signed by one of the top clubs.

Pablo Escobar

Double post

ROY RACE

Pablo Escobar wrote: »

2 uncharacteristic mistakes from him. He has over 100 clean sheets for City now and is the most able keeper with the ball at his feet that I've seen. It's a very under-rated trait in a keeper and is often cited as the reason Shay Given never got signed by one of the top clubs.

Uncharacteristic are you joking me?

Ive seen him do the same mistakes multiple times throughout his career he has a concentration issue good shot stopper but also flaps at crosses.

ShamoBuc

ROY RACE wrote: »

Uncharacteristic are you joking me?

Ive seen him do the same mistakes multiple times throughout his career he has a concentration issue good shot stopper but also flaps at crosses.

I actually think him coming for crosses is where he has improved the most. He regularly comes and fists the ball well away, something which was lacking in recent times.

overmantle

I hope he's not reading this thread.

gimmick

Every keeper makes mistakes. Over a long enough timeline you will find every keeper has made a load of silly errors. McNulty is a safe pair of hands and Im happy to have him.

Pablo Escobar

ROY RACE wrote: »

Pablo Escobar wrote: »

2 uncharacteristic mistakes from him. He has over 100 clean sheets for City now and is the most able keeper with the ball at his feet that I've seen. It's a very under-rated trait in a keeper and is often cited as the reason Shay Given never got signed by one of the top clubs.

Uncharacteristic are you joking me?

Ive seen him do the same mistakes multiple times throughout his career he has a concentration issue good shot stopper but also flaps at crosses.

For someone with such issues he seems give very few goals away. When was the last time one of these 'mistakes' lead to a goal conceded? I genuinely can't remember.

Since the start of 2014 he's conceded 77 league goals in 107 appearances. How many of these have been from goalkeeping errors? Very, very few.

Worztron

Heard this morn that Maguire could be called up for upcoming friendlies.

hufpc8w3adnk65

Worztron wrote: »

Heard this morn that Maguire could be called up for upcoming friendlies.

It was on the news. Hes rumoured to be called up for the second friendly

overmantle

MrMac84 wrote: »

It was on the news. Hes rumoured to be called up for the second friendly

Let's hope he'll stay with City until the end of the season.

namloc1980

overmantle wrote: »

Let's hope he'll stay with City until the end of the season.

If someone in England comes knocking it'll be impossible to hold onto him.

ShamoBuc

namloc1980 wrote: »

If someone in England comes knocking it'll be impossible to hold onto him.

I reckon a league 1 team might not be tempting enough, championship or he'll stay I think.

kcb

namloc1980 wrote: »

If someone in England comes knocking it'll be impossible to hold onto him.

It'll have to be someone half decent though. Competing at the top of the Championship.

gimmick

If a team comes in and offers him £1500stg a week for 52 weeks he is going regardless of the standard. I know JC has said he isn't going to anything below Championship but McGuire would be an idiot to turn away that sort of money.

hufpc8w3adnk65

gimmick wrote: »

If a team comes in and offers him £1500stg a week for 52 weeks he is going regardless of the standard. I know JC has said he isn't going to anything below Championship but McGuire would be an idiot to turn away that sort of money.

Never realized you had become his agent and accountant

gimmick

MrMac84 wrote: »

Never realized you had become his agent and accountant

Would you turn down at least a double of your wage out of loyalty to your current employer?

Worztron

It'd be awful if even he was getting paid a lot more in English Division 2 - he could end up rotting away in the reserves like Towell.

hufpc8w3adnk65

gimmick wrote: »

Would you turn down at least a double of your wage out of loyalty to your current employer?

He is completely settled in Cork. Loving the people and area. Has said numerous times the ENTIRE package to go back to England has to be correct. Money, location, manager, how the team plays
, division etc! The next move is the most important of his career and he knows it. If money was a motivating factor he'd have left in the winter, besides with these call ups to the national team rumors they certainly won't do him any harm either!

gimmick

I enjoyed this. Benno is an all rounder. A legend and a gent.

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/i-won-two-ireland-caps-but-another-league-title-here-would-equal-that-7nlq9n9ts?shareToken=1dfca2462ef75b5ca01506a02e85139b

Alan Bennett’s dream was deceptively simple: get to England and everything else, the money and the glory, would follow. Eight years and six clubs later, the unsentimental nature of his profession altered his perspective, so much so that when he speaks about being back with Cork City, it’s with the enthusiasm of a Fáilte Ireland representative.

“Coming home allowed me to fall back in love with football again,” he said. And it’s easy to understand why. Aside from the fact he is captaining a Cork side who have won eight games from eight, and seem destined to bridge a gap back to 2005, when they last won the League of Ireland title, there’s something infinitely more important than the mere winning and losing of games.

“Here, there’s a community,” he said. “Everyone is building towards the one goal. I speak to the guy who cuts the grass at Turner’s Cross and he’s all chat about Friday’s match. ‘Can’t wait for it, boy,’ he’ll say. You walk down the street and fans approach you. ‘How are you?’ they’ll ask.

“When we leave training, there’s a fan, who runs his own food company, there to supply us with our meals. You feel the goodwill every day of the week. Being top of the league, chasing a title, at the age I’m at, means the world to me. I was lucky enough to win two Ireland caps but lifting another league title with Cork would definitely equal that.”

The irony is that there was a time when he couldn’t wait to get away. It was January 2007 and Bennett was 25 and aware of Reading’s interest. Yet, there was a problem. A couple of years earlier the same club paid just over £120,000 for both Kevin Doyle and Shane Long. The season Bennett finally moved across was the year Doyle ended up as the Premier League’s sixth-highest scorer. A young man called Wayne Rooney was one place and one goal ahead while another talented player, named Cristiano Ronaldo, scored only four more goals than Doyle that year.


“So the upshot was that Cork didn’t want to lose another player cheaply, they wanted to strike the best deal possible,” Bennett said. “And I can understand that. So for two months, I sat by the telephone and waited for a call. Would Reading pay the asking price? I was desperate for it to happen because I’d seen a couple of other times when the club knocked back offers from England for young players. And it seemed to have an awful effect on them.

“I was on €600 a week at the time. Reading’s deal was worth between £3000-£5000 a week. Kevin and Shane had made the same move — Cork to Reading — and were thriving. So those months, wondering if I’d get across, were really stressful.”

January was when his purgatory ended. Except the pearly gates didn’t lead to anything heavenly. Instead, Reading never played him and loan moves to Southampton and Brentford, then low money transfers to Brentford, Cheltenham Town, Wycombe Wanderers and Wimbledon became his reality. Was this what he dreamed about?

“Looking back, I was naive,” he said. “In Cork, I had quite a sheltered football upbringing. If you made a mistake, you may have been scolded but you were allowed to learn from it. In England, you made a mistake and you could be out of the team. You could go weeks, even months, without playing and when you’d speak to a manager, he’d say, “You’ll get your chance”.

“But you never would. I quickly learned not to take anyone’s word and by the end of my time across the way, I had become so self-protective, kind of looking to divert the blame if a mistake was made.”

Colleagues of his will testify that this was never Bennett’s style and since returning home, he has rediscovered his former self, quietly advising younger players about the perils of the profession and the need to think, even at an early age, about setting up a pension. One player who has sought his counsel is Sean Maguire, the league’s top scorer and a player tipped to be the next Kevin Doyle.

“How good can Seanie be? Well, I played with Kevin and Seanie is on the same trajectory as him,” Bennett said. “When Kevin first came to Cork, it took him a while before he thrived but by the time I hooked up with him again at Reading, he was the main man in a Premier League team who missed out on Europe by just one spot.

“Seanie can go to that level. The key thing is that he should go to a club where he’ll be the No 1 striker, where the manager will trust him for five to ten games and give him time to prove himself. The last thing you want going to any English club is to be one of four or five men fighting for place. No guarantees exist. For me, there are two main differences between being a pro in Ireland and England. The first is that the rewards across the way are so much better. The second is that they are far too quick over there to find a fault in your game.

“Still, I’m glad I had the experience. I wish I had have believed in myself more. I played with Adam Lallana, Kevin, Shane Long, Stephen Hunt and loads of talented players in the lower leagues. The difference between those who make it in the Championship, say, and those who play in League One or League Two comes down to self-confidence. You need a certain mentality.”

At 35, he has that now, appreciating the fact that this shot at the title may be his last one, all the while worrying about a future away from football as the endgame approaches. “You try to be as organised as you can, hoping it’ll be a smooth landing rather than a bump,” he said, all the while hoping the sport’s emotional rollercoaster will give him one last high.

CHealy

gimmick wrote: »

If a team comes in and offers him £1500stg a week for 52 weeks he is going regardless of the standard. I know JC has said he isn't going to anything below Championship but McGuire would be an idiot to turn away that sort of money.

You seem to be ignoring the fact that he's contracted to Cork City until mid November. If he's to go during the summer it will need to be a serious offer to City, and given past robberys, id be slapping a 1 million price tag on him, otherwise they'll have to wait.

gimmick

Agree in theory, but if someone comes in and he wants to go and is stopped he will sulk and turn into a liability.

Either way, lets just hope he is with us until November and we can all wish him the very best where ever he goes.

ShamoBuc

CHealy wrote: »

You seem to be ignoring the fact that he's contracted to Cork City until mid November. If he's to go during the summer it will need to be a serious offer to City, and given past robberys, id be slapping a 1 million price tag on him, otherwise they'll have to wait.

I would actually take a lot less for him but with a big sell on percentage. Or preferably a pre contact agreement for same but let him stay for the season, not going to happen but it would be the best of both worlds.

SteelyDanJalapeno

ShamoBuc wrote: »

I would actually take a lot less for him but with a big sell on percentage. Or preferably a pre contact agreement for same but let him stay for the season, not going to happen but it would be the best of both worlds.

This, coupled with maybe a loan back till the end of the season or something would be ideal.

hufpc8w3adnk65

Another 3 points in the bag!!! WGTWTL

Worztron

The 9 wins in a row record is about to be set. Also Derry & Dundalk are crumbling. ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️

Wilberto

I always liked the number 9.

9 games played.
9 wins.
9 points clear.


Today is a good day.

SteelyDanJalapeno

9 wins, 9 points clear

gimmick

Jesus

Amazing start. But that's all it is. A start. 24 more games to play.

/buzzkill

NIMAN

It's looking like league over already.

ShamoBuc

NIMAN wrote: »

It's looking like league over already.

No its not. To think that is foolish imo. I'm around long enough Not to get too carried away.


But what a start , 9 played ....9 wins ........9 points clear...... a dream start if ever there was one!

This really should be Our year but there is a very long road ahead with many a twist and turn.

But what a Start!

kcb

This is seriously impressive from Caulfield's squad. To have Beattie and Bolger off the bench shows the depth of talent. And that still leaves Kavanagh, Campion, Ellis, Nanetti and Sadauskas waiting in the wings. 2017 should be the year.

The_Kew_Tour

I was very wrong before start of season about the quality of squad.

Very wrong now

hufpc8w3adnk65

The_Kew_Tour wrote: »

I was very wrong before start of season about the quality of squad.

Very wrong now

A lot were to be fair.

Delaney didn't instill confidence in the first few outings

Could Seani recapture last seasons form or was he a one season wonder?

It seemed like we hadn't addressed our 3 defensive midfielders issue

Could Shep and Dooley chip in more?

Does JC have a plan B?


There was a lot of questions asked in pre season that were very legimit questions but thankfully all, so far, seem to be answered positively

applehunter

I haven't been as impressed as some here.

Thought we were poor up at Rovers and poor again last night.

But we won which papers over the cracks.

Still think the squad needs cover in defence and some guile in midfield.

And if we can keep hold of Sean Maguire till end the season all the better.

gimmick

Everybody match cannot be a swashbuckling tour de force. The team is clearly oozing confidence and are winning while not coming out of 3rd gear at any stage in the season. Dundalk first half aside.

Re guile. McCormack has displaced Bolger and cannot see him losing the spot until he eventually gets suspended. Morrissey is having his best run of form and Buckley is scoring. Not much wrong there imo.

Long road ahead but thus far has been overwhelmingly positive.

ROY RACE

NIMAN wrote: »

It's looking like league over already.

:rolleyes::rolleyes:

ShamoBuc

Colin Healy as officially hung up his boots, will never forget that goal against Pats, great player.

applehunter

His performance in the 2-2 with FC Haka stands out to me.

Fabio

In case anyone hasn't seen it....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJD4bcuaJIk

Best goal I ever saw.

Worztron

Fabio wrote: »

In case anyone hasn't seen it....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJD4bcuaJIk

Best goal I ever saw.

What a goal!

ROY RACE

Career seriously affected by the challenge by that morocan never came back fully from it

ShamoBuc

10 on the spin!!

Apparently Preston manager was in attendance tonight, lots of interest in our main man, nice to score 3 without him scoring all the same!

Bring on free scoring Bray Friday Night!