'Busgate' adds to Cork farce as spot-on Quigley saves point for Pat's
Saturday September 26 2009
BOTH Cork and St Pat's have endured pretty wretched seasons but the sides nearly missed the chance to compare woes as Cork almost failed to make the trip to Inchicore after the bus company booked to transport them refused to depart until it was paid an outstanding debt of over €2,000.
While this result will have done little to ease the fears of relegation around Richmond Park for newly installed manager Pete Mahon, Cork continue to stumble from one crisis to the next. Indeed, Danny Murphy believes the latest incident has made the club a laughing stock.
Having gathered at the Silversprings Hotel in the city, the Cork squad were almost forced to consider driving to Dublin themselves to fulfil their league fixture against St Patrick's Athletic, in a turn of events being dubbed locally as 'Busgate'.
But, despite local radio station 96FM receiving pledges from listeners to pay off the debt in order to avoid further farce, a City official yesterday confirmed that the club had paid back the money in full and the squad travelled as planned.
While it was a slightly comical turn in the beleaguered Leeside club's woeful year off the pitch, the players were far from amused.
"It's embarrassing, to be honest with you, and it's not great preparation for a team that wants to get into Europe. We've put in all the effort this year and it just feels like we've been let down," said Murphy yesterday.
"It's got to that point now, I think you know, it's embarrassing really for all of us to be standing here like beggars and to be begging people to pay for a bus journey.
"To be honest with you, a lot of the players are very pissed off with how it's gone. It's gone beyond a joke and were being made to look like a laughing stock, every other team is looking at us and having a laugh thinking it's hilarious. But it's not, it's embarrassing."
However, the only embarrassment early on was for the Saints as Cork set about ruining Pete Mahon's return to Richmond as they grabbed a lead after just nine minutes.
There appeared to be little danger for Enda Stevens on the edge of his own area. However, his dithered clearance was intercepted by the on-fire Davin O'Neill, who gathered the ball to rifle in the opener for his third goal in as many games.
Yet, despite the early concession, Pat's were controlling the tempo of the game and were desperately unlucky not to have equalised when the ever-willing Ryan Guy crossed for Declan O'Brien, whose diving header brought out a superb save from goalkeeper Mark McNulty.
With the team and the support energised, the Saints upped the tempo and regained parity in spectacular fashion just before the break.
Once again a Guy cross was the spark for Pat's as Stuart Byrne rose above a flailing McNulty to loop a header towards the goal only for defender Greg O'Halloran to produce a spectacular, though ill-advised, save with his hand.
The centre-half was instantly dismissed for his troubles and Mark Quigley slotted in the penalty to shift the momentum back to the hosts.
The impact of O'Halloran's self-imposed exile was soon to become apparent as Pat's completely dominated the second period, but despite near total domination of possession the hosts could not find their way past the visitors, who parked the proverbial bus in a dour second half.
ST PATRICK'S ATHLETIC -- Clarke, Lynch, Gavin, Haverty (Maher 30), Stevens, Guy, Dempsey, Byrne, D Ryan (B Ryan 73), Quigley, O'Brien
CORK CITY -- McNulty, Mulcahy, O'Halloran, Long, Murphy, O'Neill, Gamble, Lordan, Dennehy, Cambridge (Kuduzovic 73), Silagailis (Duggan 45)
REF -- T Connolly (Dublin)
- Noel O'Reilly's first anniversary Mass will be held at St Francis Xavier Church, Gardiner Street, this evening at 5.30. All are welcome to attend.
