Colin Healy looks to steady Cork City ship away to Bray Wanderers

Since an opening day win over Cobh Ramblers, the Rebel Army have suffered reversals against Cabinteely, Athlone, Shelbourne, and Treaty United

Cork City manager Colin Healy. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Colin Healy admits the pressure is on as Cork City look to curb a four-game losing run in their SSE Airtricity League First Division clash with Bray on Friday (Carlisle Grounds, 7.30pm).

Since an opening day win over Cobh Ramblers, the Rebel Army have suffered reversals against Cabinteely, Athlone, Shelbourne, and most recently league new-comers Treaty United as Healy’s side sit second from bottom.

They travel to the Co Wicklow side to face a team who have yet to win a game this season, but have drawn four of their five games, giving City and Healy a chance to end their losing streak.

“In this job you are always under pressure,” Healy said. ”It’s a big club and I know the standards we set in and around the club and with four defeats it’s not good enough at the moment.

“All we can do is come into training on Monday, work towards Friday and hopefully get a result Friday night.”

The problems for City are starting at the back with only Wexford and Cobh having conceded more goals than Cork so far in the early weeks of the new campaign.

“A clean sheet is so important, we are giving away silly goals,” the manager admitted, “it happened again Friday night (against Treaty) we got punished for it and it’s something we need to correct pretty quickly.”

Despite this poor run of form, the players are working hard on the training pitch and are not dropping their heads, the manager said.

“Training has been fine, it always is,” he said. “They were down after the weekend, it’s my job to pick them up, they’ve been training fine, we just need to start putting points on the board, that’s the most important thing.

Training is never a problem, the attitude is good in training, the intensity is good in training so I’ve never questioned that, it’s just if we stop leaking silly goals we can put points on the board.”

Healy added that the goals they conceded against Treaty was the most disappointing aspect of the Munster derby defeat.

“We’ve been done on a corner and a throw-in we’re giving away goals too easily at the moment.”

City go into the weekend’s clash buoyed by the return of Jack Walsh, who returns after missing the last game having been sent off against Shelbourne.

On the injury front, Steven Beattie and Cory Galvin will miss the game while Gearoid Morrissey is “touch and go” for inclusion.