CORK CITY MANAGER John Caulfield admits his side face the ‘game of their lives’ on Monday night when Dundalk visit Turner’s Cross.
Unbeaten in their first 22 games of the season, Cork’s title run-in has hit a few speedbumps and last night’s 2-1 derby defeat to Limerick was their fourth loss in six outings.
Dundalk’s comfortable victory over Drogheda means the gap at the top of the SSE Airtricity League has been cut to 11 points but it’s still very much in Cork’s hands, with three points on Monday enough to secure a first title in 12 years.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport after the game at Market’s Field, Caulfield lamented his side’s defensive slip ups as they conceded two early goals to Rodrigo Tosi and Shane Tracy.
“We were two goals down after 15 minutes despite the fact that we started well,” he said.
“Even though we got back into it and created numerous chances and could have got an equaliser, at the end of the day, Limerick deserved their win.
“On the evidence of the past few weeks, we’ve been giving away soft goals. We’ve pressed the self-destruct button. But there’s only one group that can get us out of it and that’s ourselves.
“They have improved overall. Neil (McDonald) has done a great job. He’s improved their shape. They’ve improved but from our point of view, you can’t give away two goals like that.
“The first goal was comical. The second was a soft free to give away. And then all of a sudden, you’re chasing the game.
“Every game in this league, you have to earn the right to win it and in the last couple of weeks we haven’t done enough to do that.”
With a sell out crowd expected at Turner’s Cross and the prospect of Cork being crowned champions, Monday night under the lights promises to be a special occasion — but Caulfield knows his players must rise to the challenge.
“We have to play the game of our lives,” he added. ”These guys all year have done that. But in the last month or so, we’ve slipped up a bit.
“We just have to get back to basics on Monday night. It’s going to be an incredibly difficult game. But these guys are able to do it if they put their minds to it.”
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