Cork City wait for title shot ‘not ideal’

John Caulfield yesterday bemoaned the fact that Cork City have to wait more than a fortnight for the next opportunity to seal a Premier League title they seemed to have wrapped up months ago.

A reshuffling of fixtures means it will be Friday, October 13, at Dalymount Park before they resume their search for the two points required to seal the deal.

“That’s not ideal,” the City manager remarked. “Unless you are dealing with a catalogue of injuries, we are better off playing. Our lads are strong and fit, but the league has been a bit disjointed these past few weeks. I’d hate to see how things would have been if we hadn’t the FAI Cup.”

Caulfield added: “Monday night against Dundalk was actually the first opportunity we’d had to win the title. At least from now on, there’s no other story or outside influence. It’s up to us now, winning it is in our control.”

Despite the disappointment of Dundalk’s late equaliser, yesterday morning offered a sunnier perspective of the performance and the title scenario.

“What [Monday] night delivered was a performance similar to what we’d been producing for two thirds of the season. We had the opportunities to get the second goal and didn’t take it, but defensively we were very good.

"The first 45 minutes was as good as anything we’ve done all season — with our full team. So, there’s no excuses, as I’ve told them, that is our level for the remainder of the season.

“The confidence might have been low and a few of the lads might have lost a bit of form but Monday night proved we are back on track.

"Very few clubs would have dealt with a situation where they lost their club captain halfway through, lost the best striker in the club’s history, and then a left back. And it was going to have an effect when everyone is saying over the past two months ‘sure, they are going to win the league’. These lads are human.

“Fellas might lose a bit of focus, in some games we were not at our best but we are in a cup semi-final and one win away from winning the league. Against Dundalk, we were back doing what we’ve been doing all year and doing it without some influential players with us.

“In a city and county like Cork, you get a lot of praise when you do well, but have to be able to take the criticism when you don’t do well. The lads have taken a lot of criticism the last few weeks and they have had to stand up and be counted.

"They came out of Friday night [a 2-1 defeat in Limerick], and sometimes you have to say ‘are we really ready to be champions or are we not?’ If you are, you’ve to stand up.”