Slick Cork City coast into another semi-final
Karl Sheppard had just scored twice to help ease holders City into the semi-finals of the FAI Cup as they simply had too much for First Division Longford Town in Mullollogher.
It’s a third successive year that Cork have found themselves in this position and they’ll fear no-one in tonight’s draw for the last four.
Longford were compact with a good shape to them as they frustrated Cork early on. But City passed the ball well and their patience paid off as they took the lead on 24 minutes.
Longford keeper Jack Brady initially tipped a stinging drive from Jimmy Keohane round the post, but Kieran Sadlier’s in-swinging corner sailed directly to the net at the far post.
Four minutes later Cork doubled their lead, carving Longford open all too easily.
Shane Griffin’s cross from the left wasn’t cut out and Keohane had time and space to find the bottom corner with the help of a slight deflection.
Though Stephen Dooley scuffed a shot wide with the goal gaping, Cork got their third goal a minute before half-time. Brady initially slipped as he came out to claim City skipper Greg Bolger’s ball over the top and then ended up taking down Sheppard to concede a penalty. Sheppard duly stepped up and confidently sent the keeper the wrong way from the spot.
Cork stretched their lead further six minutes into the second half. Substitute Connor Ellis dinked a sublime ball over the top for the run of man-of-the-match Sheppard who showed good composure to rifle to the net.
Robbie Williams sliced Peter Hopkins’ cross over his own keeper Mark McNulty to gift Longford their consolation goal on 62 minutes. Central defender Williams made amends minutes later, somehow clearing a shot from Davy O’Sullivan over the bar.
“It was a great professional performance from us, but we needed that here because Neale (Fenn) has built a very good, young and energetic team at Longford,” said Caulfield.
“Our first half was very good and we moved the ball well, our one- and two-touch football was good to watch and our pace was great.
“We scored some quality goals before half-time and we got another great goal early in the second half.
“Overall, to get four goals away from home and to be back in the semi-finals of the cup for the third year in a row is a great feeling.”
It was also a welcome tonic to exorcise the ghost of a poor display in Tallaght last time out.
“The lads were a bit deflated and disappointed at losing to Shamrock Rovers last week and the only answer is to come back on the pitch, start moving and working hard and that’s exactly what we did and, as I say, we are delighted to be in the semi-finals of the competition.”
Caulfield reserved special praise for his two-goal striker. “Karl Sheppard was man of the match with his two goals and his overall play was brilliant,” said Caulfield.
“He made some great runs in behind and he caused them problems all night long and he was unlucky not to walk off with the match ball and a hat-trick.
“His movement on and off the ball is excellent and that’s what we need if we are to create and score goals in the run-in now.”
Idle this weekend due to the EA Sports Cup final, Cork, 14 points clear at the top of the Premier Division table, resume their quest to seal the title at Markets Field on September 22.
“We have a tough run-in when we switch back to the league up at Limerick on Friday week and then we have Dundalk at Turner’s Cross (Monday, September 25),” said Caulfield.
“If we win in Limerick then we can clinch the title at home to Dundalk and that would be some way to seal it.”
Brady; Friel, Haverty, O’Reilly, Noack-Hofmann; Dillon (Cowan, h-t), Zambra, Verdon; Hopkins (Chambers, 75), O’Sullivan, Kehoe (Simon, 60).
McNulty; McCarthy, Williams, Delaney, Griffin; Bolger, Morrissey; Dooley (Ellis, h-t), Keohane, Sadlier (Campion, 75); Sheppard.
Derek Tomney (Dublin).
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