St Pat’s 1
Cork City 2
A BEAUTIFUL FINISH from Danny Morrissey was the only real highlight in Inchicore tonight as Cork City beat St Patrick’s Athletic 2-1 in Richmond Park.
Cork, looking for their first win in Dublin this season and their first victory in the league since beating Pat’s at the end of August, only had to wait 10 minutes to open the scoring when Steven Beattie forced in the ball from the first corner of the game.
It was a scrappy goal to say the least, with both Darren Dennehy and Ross Gaynor involved in helping John Dunleavy’s corner-kick back across goal.
Needing at least a point to secure fourth spot, Pat’s added some intensity into their play after that, and Killian Brennan and Christy Fagan had efforts saved and blocked respectively, before Danny Morrissey made it 2-0 with a sumptuous goal.
Karl Sheppard’s lofted pass from the centre-circle allowed the striker to race clear, and as Conor O’Malley advanced, Morrissey deftly guided the ball over the goalkeeper and in.
The striker injured himself in the process and was quickly replaced by John O’Flynn, and Cork continued to look dangerous, while Jamie McGrath had the Saints’ best effort before the break when he forced Mark McNulty into a smart save.
Most of the 723 fans who filed into Richmond Park hoping to see Pat’s secure European football for a sixth year in a row were left frustrated after the break as their side continued to have good possession in and around the box without creating much.
Jamie McGrath finally forced McNulty to save on the hour mark from a tight angle, but, for the most part, Cork were more than capable of containing the Pat’s attack.
In a game that most won’t remember, it was not as if Cork dominated either, and Conor O’Malley was rarely if ever tested, and Pat’s had to wait until the 90th minute to eventually score, when Aaron Greene scored from a neat passing move with a cool finish.
ST PATRICK’S ATHLETIC: O’Malley, Bermingham, Brennan (Bayly, 83), McEleney, Desmond, Byrne (Hoare, 62), Chambers, Morris (Verdon, 83), Greene, McGrath, Fagan.
CORK CITY: McNulty, O’Connor, Bennett, Dennehy, McSweeney, Gaynor, Buckley (Kearney, 53), Dunleavy, Sheppard, Beattie (O’Sullivan, 90), Morrissey (O’Flynn, 25).
