Paudie Kissane wary of Mallow attack ahead of derby

Clyda Rovers'  Paudie Kissane in action against Bantry Blues earlier this month in the Bon Secours Cork SAFC. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

Paudie Kissane knows it sounds like he’s playing up Mallow ahead of their Avondhu derby but he insists Clyda Rovers will have to deliver a major performance to win Sunday’s Cork Senior A FC round two clash.

The weekend clash is the first adult championship fixture between the clubs in 10 years — when they were in the Premier IFC. Both that tie and their 2004 SFC meeting prior to that went to replays.

Due to the round-robin nature of the competition this time around, that won’t happen this weekend and 2010 All-Ireland SFC winner Kissane maintains Mallow are favourites despite Clyda topping Group C after the opening round.

“We were delighted with the result we got against Bantry,” says the 41-year-old defender. “I wouldn’t say it was a great performance, there are many things we can improve on, but we kicked some great scores to finish strong.

“Mallow got to the 2020 Senior A final this year and then got a great result in the first round against a Fermoy team who are always hard to beat. I’m not privy to what goes on in the Mallow camp but it is a respected rivalry.

“Clyda will have to play really well to have a chance of winning because the difference is that Mallow have some really quality forwards. That’s not me trying to build them up but going by the formbook of the last few years.

“We want to give a good enough performance and that will be the challenge. No team relies on one man but for a club like ours a player like Conor Corbett is a huge loss. We have one or two more injury issues too so we won’t be at full strength but hopefully we can take confidence from the Bantry game.

“We’re in a better place than we were 12 months ago when we had come down from the top senior grade, got well beaten by Bandon the first day and that was the deciding factor in us not progressing to the knockout stages.”

Rovers’ replay win in 2011 was the opposite of what happened seven years previous. It took a deflected Kissane goal to drag Clyda back into the drawn affair. “Mallow were comprehensively the better team in the drawn game and in the closing stages we got a fortunate goal and we snuck a replay,” he recalls.

“In the replay and sometimes it happens, we took a bit of momentum from the result and we were the better team and deserved the win.

“It was a reverse of 2004 in that we were the better team the first day, Mallow finished strong and forced a replay and then Mallow were by far the better team in the replay.

“There was a short window between the games, three or four days, and they destroyed us. You don’t remember the scoreline but you never forget the experience.

“If the teams were meeting more frequently, there would be more of a rivalry. It will always be a rivalry because we’re neighbours but it hasn’t been there as much because we haven’t seen enough of each other on the field and in knock-out games but the supporters are looking forward to it.”