Skipper Eva Mangan wants much more from Cork City - and herself

Eva Mangan during a Cork City FC squad portraits session at Bishopstown Stadium in Cork. Photo by Ben McShane/Sportsfile

Eva Mangan will be hoping for more luck at Turner’s Cross on Saturday than she experienced for Cheltenham on Friday, although it’s a safe bet to say she’s taking the former a lot more seriously.

“My family always on the Friday put on a few bets but I just look pick one for fun based on the colours of the jerseys, it's just for a bit of fun, really,” admits Mangan, a few minutes before Gaelic Warrior, whom she didn’t pick, charged to victory.

But after finishing another week of her placement at St Patrick’s College, as part of her third year studying P.E and history, where she is edging closer to becoming a qualified secondary school teacher, the fortunes of the Cork City Women are firmly on her mind.

The 2026 Women’s Premier Division race begins this weekend, and City will be hoping to avoid a false start with Shamrock Rovers coming to town and providing the first hurdle.

Barry Ryan took hold of the reins at City last October and he will be looking to lead the Rebel Army into the winner’s circle for the first time since last April as soon as possible.

On a serious note, City have endured a run of 15 losses in their last 16 matches and Mangan, who will again captain the side this season, insists the club, and her own, performances must improve.

“Last year was really disappointing, on a team level and on a personal level,” added the 21-year-old.

“I probably wasn't half as good as what I can be and what I wanted to be last year, but especially as a team finishing last, it was really disappointing.

“I probably wasn't on the ball half as much as I wanted to be and I felt like I was just running after the ball really.

“We were kind of very defensive last year, so hopefully this year it'll change. To be fair, Barry has come in and his way of playing, he's told me that he wants to get the best out of me, so I trust him as a coach that he'll get the best out of me.

“He's always pushing me in training to be the best I can be, so I can't wait to play under him again.

“This year we're just going to try our best, and we know when we play to 100% of what we're capable of, we're nowhere near the bottom, so it's just about taking it game by game now really.” 

City will again have one of the youngest squads in the Women’s Premier Division, but Mangan has been impressed by what she has seen from some of the academy stars breaking through, with 15-year-old Leah O’Leary Callender in particular impressing.

“I wouldn't have known her much really until she came in but she's a really, really good player,” admits the Carrigaline native.

“This year I hope she plays a lot of minutes with us because she's well able, and the potential she has… I genuinely see her probably move across to England when she can at 18, like she's that good. She's really, really stood out now for us in pre-season. 

“We are still really, really young, and it's obviously difficult when we don't have that experience, but I think it shows we're just building the blocks for the years to come.

“It’s just about not focussing too much on that we're a young team because we're a good team.” 

As for her own future, after partaking in trials at Liverpool, Newcastle and Charlton in recent times, Mangan confirmed it is still her dream to move across the channel herself in the future, but only after she has completed her degree.

Returning to the Republic of Ireland senior squad and winning a first cap is also a target of the talented playmaker, but for now she is just looking to upset the odds against Shamrock Rovers on Saturday.

”They were obviously great offers but I kind of decided I wanted to finish my college degree. I'm in third year now, I have one more year, and hopefully in the future, maybe, I will cross the water.

“I'd love it. It's been my dream since I'm younger so hopefully, I'll keep on building towards that.

“And I know I play my best football when I'm enjoying it, that's when I'm at my top level.

“So, if I just get back to that this season, hopefully I might get in around the mix (with Ireland) again. That's always the long-term goal.

“But at the moment my full focus is obviously on Cork City and my education.

“We're buzzing, we can't wait to get going. I think it's a really good start for us, especially that it's home, and look, we're underdogs.

“The pressure's all on them to come down and perform and get a win. We just know we have to turn up, make it hard for them, work 100% hard, and I think we'll grind out a result and shock everyone.

“We've come on so much from last year. We get a lot of criticism, which is probably fair from last year's performances. We owe it to ourselves this year to just show everyone what we can do as a team.”