alec6247 - Comments

I'm beginning to catch up with both crashorburn and BOWC

Hopefully if we continue in this way we can lift the title and the Senior Challenge Cup which are the only two other ones I need whilst at this team before I will have to drop down to the first division.

So July came, and we faced five games during the month, although we had no league games as we concentrated solely on the Europa League qualifications and also faced the Munster Senior Cup final.



So we were to face Quarabag Agdam a club side from Azerbaijan in the first qualifying round of the Europa League and a brilliant performance away from home saw us take a 2-1 lead back to Turner's Cross. We had fallen behind early on in the first leg, but we were back level on 13 minutes as Sean Maguire on his return from injury grabbed a goal for us. As the game continued it looked as though the scores would only be 1-1 as we returned, which was a perfectly respectable scoreline, but Ian Sweeney had other ideas, grabbing a winner in the 81st minute.

The return leg was a week later, and with Quarabag Agdam needing to win 2-0 or win by one goal scoring a minimum of 3 we felt confident we could progress. Things couldn't have started better for us as Gerry Byrne put us into the lead after 2 minutes. We were pegged back in the 13th minute, but David O'Leary restored our lead 4 minutes later. In the second-half, Thomas McGee scored an absolute belter from 25 yards in the 73rd minute and it was followed by David O'Connor scoring his first of the season in the 81st minute to further extend our lead. Quarabag Agdam did manage to grab a very late consolation goal in the 87th minute but we ran out as comfortable winners, 4-2 on the day, as 6-3 in the tie.

We were rewarded for winning our first round qualifier with a two legged tie against Maccabi Tel-Aviv, an Israeli side. The first leg was played at Turner's Cross, and after a good defensive showing, the scores remained tied at 0-0, with it all to play for in the second leg when we traveled to Israel a week later.

In the second leg, both sides had chances in the first-half, but neither was able to take them. We were given a boost to our chances early on in the second half when Maccabi Tel-Aviv had a player sent off in the 56th minute, but during normal time we couldn't make our numerical advantage count. The tie went into extra-time and with the opponents tiring and our extra man on the pitch, we took the lead in the 96th minute, as Thomas McGee found the back of the net. Five minutes later, we were 2-0 up as Christian Peters nodded past the home keeper from a free-kick and sent us through to the third qualifying round where we would face LOSC Lille. A tough draw and one we are very unlikely to progress through from, but one that we will approach in the same way as the others and just hope for the best!

Our final game of the month was the Munster Senior Cup final against Waterford Utd. Having played the younger players all the way through the competition, and with it being them who had earned the place in the final, it was only fair that we continued playing them alongside some more senior members of the team. Waterford had a goal dubiously disallowed midway through the first-half, but the scores were tied at the break. As we went into the second-half, the players picked up their game another level, and went ahead just after an hour as Martin Malone nodded in from close range on a corner to put us 1-0 up. With some of the players beginning to tire, a couple of senior players were brought on to provide some experience and to ensure that they would see the game out, and Sean Maguire settled the game, extending our lead in the 83rd minute to put the game beyond doubt and ensure that we would win the cup for the third successive season!





Although we had played no league games this month, the league had carried on regardless. Despite this, we were still sitting in second place on 32 points, seven points behind the leaders Shamrock Rovers, although now we had four games in hand! If we were able to go on and win those games, we would surely be in pole position to win the league this season!

As we move onto what is undoubtedly going to be an extremely busy last 3 months of the season, would we be able to grasp our opportunity to make this possibly the best season that Cork City had ever experienced?!

Thanks for the comments and support guys! Got big hopes for this season, hopefully we can make it a memorable one!

So we moved onto June, which was a relatively quiet month for us following our exit from the Irish League Cup, but we still faced two important games in the league to keep up with Shamrock Rovers and give us the opportunity to overtake them.



Our month began with a game against Sligo Rovers, and it was much the same as the games at the end of the last month. Although we looked strong defensively, we lacked a clinical finisher and the game ended goalless for our fourth draw in five league games.

A friendly game against Douglas Hall was up next, and with a need for morale and some self belief to be restored, a strong side lined up. As expected, the players controlled the game from the beginning and were 2-0 up by half-time, with David O'Leary scoring in the 16th minute, before Ian Sweeney doubled the advantage ten minutes before the break. David O'Leary grabbed his second soon after the restart, and with the game won and hopefully with some positive impacts on morale, some substitutions were made with one eye on the important upcoming game against Dundalk. The game finished 3-0 following a good display, and hopefully we would be able to carry it through to our next game.

Up next was a home game in the league against Dundalk. With a slight gap beginning to open up between us and Shamrock Rovers at the top of the league, it was imperative that it was a game that we won. With a first-half without many incidents of note, the only goal in the game came midway through the second half as Graham Davitt diverted the ball into his own net to give us only our second much needed victory in six league games. As an added bonus, Shamrock had lost 2-1 against Sligo Rovers meaning that the gap was only three points.

Our final game of the month was the Munster Senior Cup semi-final, and another opportunity for the younger players to show me what they could do. A great first-half performance saw us leading 3-0 at the break following goals from Rory Rossiter, a first Cork City goal for Brian Russo and an own goal from Bobby Logan. They pulled one back in the second half, but Sean Duffy grabbed a fourth in the 68th minute to put the game beyond doubt and we advanced through to the final.



So with only two games played in the month, the league table hadn't changed a great deal, but we had closed the gap on Shamrock Rovers by a point, so the gap was now only three points. We still had two games in hand, and as an added bonus Sean Maguire returned from his injury during the mid-season break, returning the squad to almost full strength. As we move onto the second half of the season we have the Europa League qualifiers to look forward to, as well as our run in the Senior Challenge Cup alongside our continued progress in the league. Would we be able to make it a memorable season and complete a treble?

We moved onto May and faced eight games in total.



We began the month we a home game against Fermoy in the quarter-final of the Munster Senior Cup. Another opportunity to play the younger players within the squad, and again they continued to impress with a very good 2-0 win Aled Kearney grabbing his first goal for the club in the 19th minute and Rory Rossiter secured the win in the 88th minute following a tidy finish, advancing through to the semi-finals where we were drawn against U.C.C.

Our second game of the month we welcomed Drogheda Utd to Turner's Cross. A good finish by John Sullivan in the 34th minute gave us the lead and the scores were 1-0 at half-time. A horrendous mistake by Paul White in the 60th minute gifted them an equaliser. We continued to press forward for a winner but were ultimately unable to find one and the game ended as a draw.

An away game against U.C.D. was up next and a pretty dull game only livened up in the final 10 minutes as they took the lead in the 86th minute. An instant reply from Liam Breen came and a 1-1 draw was the result.

Another away game was up next against Mervue Utd and another game which appeared like it was going to peter out in a dull 0-0 draw, until deep into injury time a foul in the box gave us a penalty which Christian Peters converted. It gave us our first victory in the league this month, which was long overdue.

Up next was the all important All-Ireland/Setanta Cup where we would be facing Shamrock Rovers at the Aviva Stadium. A record breaking 38,576 fans turned up to watch the game, which was actually for the most part a rather dull affair as both sides were concentrating more on defence in the fear of falling behind. As the game was approaching its close, a brilliant quick passing play by us saw Ian Sweeney arrive in the box with the ball at his feet, and he made no mistake scoring what turned out to be the only goal of the game with just over 10 minutes left to play. The defence held on and we won! It was another fantastic defensive performance, and also marked our second consecutive win over Shamrock Rovers. Another trophy was able to be ticked off the list as we moved on, with only 3 now remaining in Ireland!



Back to the league, and a home game against Longford, which following the number of draws and points we had dropped so far this month had become something of a must win game. It couldn't have started much worse for us however, as Longford took the lead following a freekick in the 7th minute, leaving us with it all to do. John Sullivan equalised for us before half-time, scoring the goal of the month.



As we continued in the second-half we were unable to create any clear cut chances, and our hopes took a sever dent when Sean Maguire had to come off injured, an injury that would later rule him out for 6-7 weeks. With our main striker off the pitch injured, the team just looked slightly deflated and the second-half closed with neither side having been able to add to their tally, ending in a 1-1 draw.

Onto another one of the cup competitions that we faced, and we had been drawn against Mervue Utd in the Senior Challenge Cup. With Sean Maguire missing, the team lacked that clinical finishing that he provided and it was no surprise that the game ended in a 0-0 draw meaning a replay would be needed to decide the winner. We returned to Turner's Cross for the replay 5 days later, and we faced very much the same problem. Mervue very rarely threatened our goal, but we were lacking that clinical finish and the game went into extra time. As penalties were beginning to look like the most likely outcome of the tie, Christian Peters broke the deadlock with only a minute remaining to the relief of the crowd, and more importantly the manager as we advanced through to the next round.



At the end of the month we were still sitting in second place, four points behind the leaders Shamrock Rovers, and with two games in hand. We had failed to capitalise on our opportunity to overtake them at the top of the table this month due to the number of draws we had recorded, however with an opportunity to still open up a small gap at the top of the table spurring us on, hopefully we would move on after the short mid-season break to start recording some long overdue wins.

Was still a 10 point gap at the end of the season, but so far its looking good! Picking up some good points and some good wins, hopefully we can keep it up! Finances have take a huge boost as well with the progress in the Setanta Cup as well as possibility of playing Europa League football!

interesting decision to jump ship, but looks like its working out for you at the moment! Good luck with Basingstoke!

A big month for us saw us face eight games in all, as we began our Irish League Cup campaign, our defence of the Munster Senior Cup as well as facing Linfield over two ties in the All-Ireland/Setanta Cup alongside our normal league games!



A poor start to the month as we traveled to meet Drogheda Utd in the Irish League Cup. A pretty uneventful game with the only point to note being that of their goal, coming in the 52nd minute. It was a disappointing way to end our cup run, but one that isn't important for us and does allow us to focus our attention elsewhere.

Our next game we returned to Turner's Cross as we welcomed Ballynanty Rovers in our Munster Senior Cup first round game. This game allowed me to rest some of the senior players, and give an opportunity to some of the younger players in the squad. They did me proud, with Thomas McKee grabbing a first-half brace within 20 minutes of the game. Ballynanty Rovers grabbed one back late on, but the side showed incredible maturity and held on for the victory.

As we moved towards the middle of the month, the vital games for us began, starting with our trip to Linfield for the first leg of the semi-final of the All-Ireland/Setanta Cup. It was always going to be a tough fixture for us and one that we would need to perform very well in to be able to have any chance of taking something back to Cork. The game didn't get off to the best of starts as we fell behind within 20 minutes of kick-off, and at half-time the score was 1-0. Sean Maguire seized upon a mistake to equalise for us though on the hour mark and looked to have grabbed an important away goal. Six minutes later though, Linfield were ahead again and it looked as though we would be condemned to defeat in the first leg until Kalen Spillane, who had been phenomenal all game, grabbed an important equaliser with only a couple of minutes left of the game! The final score was 2-2, but of course it was only half-time in the leg, with the second game to be played back at Turner's Cross.

Inbetween the two legs against Linfield, we had a game against St Pat's Athletic to deal with. After a pretty dull first-half it looked as though this was going to be headed to a 0-0 draw, as neither side had created very many chances at all. A mistake by keeper Paul White allowed St Pat's Athletic to take the lead in the 52nd minute, and it appeared as though we would be heading for our first league defeat of the season as we had nothing to respond with until Sean Maguire rescued a point for us with 4 minutes remaining and the scores ended up tied at 1-1.

Onto the second leg of our tie against Linfield, and we knew that we only needed a low scoring draw to advance, however we really wanted to win the game. Either way, it was important that we got the first goal and John Sullivan was the man to do that for us drilling home in the 7th minute to give us the lead. Linfield got an equalising goal with 20 minutes remaining, but 1-1 would not be good enough for them and they continued to press. Another heroic effort in defence prevented them from grabbing that all important second goal and the game ended 1-1. We had made it through to the final! Over both legs Linfield had been by far the better side, creating many more chances, but through a mixture of good fortune and some brilliant defending we had been able to claim quite possibly the biggest scalp we have yet!

Following the highs of reaching the final, we then faced Shamrock Rovers in the league, who we would also be facing as our opponents in the All-Ireland/Setanta Cup. A brilliant start saw Christian Peters waltz through the midfield and defence and place a low shot past the keeper to open the scoring in the third minute. As the game continued it became very clear that it was a bit of an off day for Shamrock Rovers as they were struggling to create hardly anything, as well as some extremely poor finishing. We took full advantage, and a mistake allowed Gerry Byrne in to score a second in the 70th minute and ensure that we would be travelling back to Cork with all three points as the game ended 2-0.

Another game in the Munster Senior Cup gave the youngsters another chance to show me what they had, and again they didn't disappoint as a first-half goal from Jenkins Moloney saw us take a 1-0 lead into half-time. After the break as some of the younger players tired, some more experienced players were put on just to ensure the result, and it was one of those who got the second goal, as Christian Peters scored in the 79th minute to secure the result. A 2-0 victory that was extremely pleasing and the youngsters all played very well.

Our final game of the month was against Derry City who had appeared to become our bogey team since I had taken over at Cork City, and it was nearly no different today. In a poor game of very few chances, Gerry Byrne scored the only goal of the game in the 42nd minute to give us a 1-0 victory. A good result, but not the performance to go along with it unfortunately.



At the end of the month we still occupied 2nd place, sitting 3 points behind Shamrock Rovers. Some poor results for them this month though had seen them drop some points, and we had 3 games in hand over them, which would be vital we took maximum points from if we were to take advantage of the situation. Good progress in the Munster Senior Cup was also a highlight of the month, but the undoubted highlight was the victory over two legs of Linfield to progress to the final where hopefully we could add that trophy to the cabinet for only the second time in Cork City's short history, as well as tick it off of our list! As we move on into May, the league form is important for us to continue keeping pressure on Shamrock Rovers as well as taking the opportunity to open up a small gap at the top if we can.

The season was finally underway, and hopefully with a good start this would be the season that we would be able to challenge Shamrock Rovers for the title! It was a busy opening month for us as we faced five league games, as well as an All-Ireland Cup tie.



Our season kicked off as we faced Sligo Rovers at home. A fantastic start saw us take the lead after 8 minutes as Sean Maguire kicked off the season. We weren't in the lead for long however, as Sligo pulled one back 10 minutes later following a defensive lapse, but we were soon ahead again as Danny Murphy scored an absolute belter of a free-kick to restore the lead. In the second-half, the game continued much the same as the first with both sides having chances, however we were able to take ours as Sligo struggled, Sean Maguire getting his second of the game in the 64th minute to give us a 3-1 lead which is how the game finished.

A week later we traveled to Shelbourne, and it was another entertaining game. We fell behind after 2 minutes as our defence seemed to be still mentally back in the changing room, but they quickly improved. Sean Maguire pulled us level right on the stroke of half-time as the sides went in level at the break. In the second-half, we were by far the better team, creating chance after chance but failing to convert them until new signing Roy O'Hara on his competitive debut for the club converted a corner at the near post. With time running out, Shelbourne continued to press to find an equaliser but left themselves exposed at the back, which Sean Maguire used to his advantage to score his second goal of the game, and fourth in two games deep into injury time, settling the game.

Our next challenge was the quarter-final of the b]All-Ireland/Setanta Cup[/b] against Waterford Utd over two legs. The first leg was back at Turner's Cross, and a good start saw Kalen Spillane convert a chance from a corner to give us a 1-0 lead. Waterford were able to peg us back right on the stroke of half-time however, the defence switching off at a critical moment. We came back out in the second-half, and continued to press for a second goal, which looked like it would come when we were awarded a penalty in the 84th minute, but a dreadful kick from Gerry Byrne was easily saved by the keeper and it would end 1-1.

Back to the league, and U.C.D. made the trip to Cork, and were sent home without any points following a very good display, where we were excellent in limiting them to the number of chances they had and converted ours with Ian Sweeney getting his first of the season in the first-half, before Sean Maguire continued his fantastic start to the season grabbing a second early in the second-half. With one eye on the must win second leg of our game against Waterford, some substitutions were made and the game did die out a little bit, but we had done enough and it ended 2-0.

So our second leg against Waterford, and it was a game that we needed to win, being behind on the away goals rule, it was vitally important that we remained strong at the back, whilst also threatening going forward. It was soon clear that Waterford were going to sit back and do their utmost to defend their lead, which for much of the game looked as though it was going to work, until Gerry Byrne, making up for his penalty miss in the first leg, drilled home from the edge of the area with 20 minutes left to play. We won the game 1-0 and the tie 2-1, which we were rewarded for by being drawn against Northern Irish side Linfield in the semi-final.

An away game against Dundalk in the league was decided by a singular goal, as both sides focused on the importance of defence in this game, Christian Peters scoring with a free-kick 4 minutes before the end of the game, and continued our winning start to the season.

We moved on to our final league game of the month, and we were to play Waterford again! Having played them twice already this month, we were full of confidence as we went through our preparations, but unfortunately Sean Maguire suffered an injury in training which would rule him out of the game. Fortunately it was only minor, and he should hopefully be back in time for our next game, but we did our best to get by without him, and Ian Sweeney stepped upto the plate, with two first half goals coming within 17 minutes of eachother to give us a deserved 2-0 lead after a fine first-half display. Waterford managed to grab one back with 10 minutes remaining, making it slightly nervy for us, but we held on to record our fifth straight victory in the league so far!



At the end of the month we were sat in 2nd place, one point behind Shamrock Rovers, although they had played an extra game. It couldn't have been a better start to the season as we progressed through the All-Ireland/Setanta Cup as well and gave us a good opportunity to kick on and really start to make this a season to remember. I was also awarded a consecutive Manager of the Month award, following on from the one I was awarded at the end of last season.




As we move onto an important April, it is important that we continue our good run of form to ensure that we can overcome Linfield as well as start trying to open up a gap in the table for when a poor run of form will inevitably come.

Congrats on another promotion!

What a fantastic signing! Looks like a great addition to your squad, and he is only going to get better! Might need to ship out a couple of fringe players though to help balance the books though.

So we moved into the new season with high hopes and expectations of being able to challenge for the league this season. Firstly we had to bring some new bodies in and we looked to the transfer market to see what we could do.



Sean Duffy was brought in to provide competition and cover for the AML position, and he is one for the future as he will improve massively over the next season with some game time.



Roy O'Hara was also brought in to provide cover for the defense, and again with his age only being 20, is another one who has the potential to improve over the season with game time, and look at establishing himself as first choice left-back possibly next season.



James McKeown was also brought in as cover for Paul White, and he will more than likely be involved in the cup games this season. Greg McDermott, who was our previous keeper was moved out on loan for the season up until his contract ends due to him not being good enough for the team.



Slightly worryingly, Shamrock Rovers came in with a €200k bid for Sean Maguire during the close season, which the board accepted on my behalf as they felt it was too much money to turn down. This left me sweating a little bit, but fortunately he turned them down, stating that he was enjoying playing for me too much!

This left our squad looking like this:



Although the attacking midfield positions look weaker than the rest of the side, the players in those positions are still young and are improving all the time, and it won't be long before they are similar in ability to the rest of the team. Paul White is continuing to improve, and it won't be long before he is one of the top goalkeepers in the league.

Onto the financial side of things, and the finances are very secure at the moment.



With €128k sitting in the bank, we are projected to make a €90k profit this coming season, and that is before money for the Europa League. Should we be fortunate enough to get through to the group stages then that will help our bank balance a huge amount, although it is massively dependent on the draw of course! Although we are slightly overspending on wages by €381, it shouldn't have an impact on the financial stability of the club.

Onto the preseason matches, and we were only able to play two friendlies due to our involvement in the All Ireland Cup, which is also known as the Setanta Cup.



An opening draw against SD Galway was not a particularly bad result as the players had just got back from holiday, and SD Galway had finished second in Division One last season.

We then moved onto the All Ireland Cup first round, which was a two-legged game against Crusaders, a Northern-Irish side. We were away for the first leg, and a fantastic performance by the players saw us race into a 3-0 lead by half-time, goals coming from Kalen Spillane, Ian Sweeney and Sean Maguire. A penalty in the second-half, which was converted by Gerry Byrne saw us take a 4-0 lead back home to Turner's Cross, and the tie was as good as over.

In the second leg, we got the first goal of the game to make it almost certain that we were to advance to the quarter-finals, however Crusaders were not going to go down that easily, and managed to grab 2 goals back in the second-half, but there was too much to do, and although we lost the game 2-1, we had won the tie 5-2 on aggregate. We were rewarded with a tie against Waterford Utd in the quarter final, hopefully a game we should win and move onto the semi-finals!

Our final preseason game was against our affiliate club Castlebar. A professional performance saw us run out comfortable 3-0 winners, as we rested a few key players, and gave some of the younger players an opportunity.

As we move forward to the start of the season the ambition for this season is to challenge for the title as well as try and tie up some of the other cups that we have left to win in Ireland. With a squad that was beginning to come together, we were declared joint second favourites for the title at 5/1, and hopefully we would be able to live up to the preseason odds, and maybe even beat them!

So five years into the challenge, and this is what my total stats look like.



With Cork City having been my longest position, I had played 93 games as manager, winning 54 of them, drawing 22 and losing 17, which I am pretty happy with, for an overall win percentage of 58%.

Overall, I had managed 257 games, winning 144, drawing 61 and losing 52, for an overall win percentage of 56%. So my current job had been my most successful in terms of percentage games won.



My reputation had also been rising, with it now at national standing. My financial control was also looking good, along with my domestic player bias (which should be where it is considering what the rules of the challenge are!).

Overall a good first 257 games in management, and I have managed to win 6 trophies so far, but with a long way to go hopefully it won't be too long before I start flying through them!

Our final month of action for this season saw us face our final five games as we attempted to consolidate and secure ourselves a position to play European Football next season.



We began the month at home to Dundalk, and in an end to end first half we took the lead through Sean Maguire scoring in the 43rd minute. Dundalk equalised in the 57th minute and could have gone on to grab another, however it wasn't to be for them as Gerry Byrne scored a fantastic goal in the 80th minute to give us all three points and also meant that we leapfrogged Dundalk into second place in the table.

Our next game was against Longford, and we traveled there with expectations and morale high following our brilliant 2-1 victory against Dundalk. In an interesting first-half where both sides failed to capitalise on mistakes saw the scores level at the break. At the start of the second half, a cracking free-kick from Danny Murphy, finding the top corner of the goal from 30 yards, leaving the keeper with no chance gave us the lead on 51 minutes. The scores weren't level for long however as Longford equalised 10 minutes later. As the game approached it's conclusion, it looked like a draw was going to be the result until Carl Finnigan popped up at the back post in injury time to sidefoot the ball into the goal giving us a well deserved victory.

We moved onto our next game where we welcomed Sligo Rovers to Turner's Cross, and in what was a very entertaining game the scores were level at half-time. As the second-half started, it didn't take long for there to be goals, as their striker seized upon a mistake by the defence to simply pass the ball into the goal past keeper Paul White in the 52nd minute. It didn't take long for us to pull level again though, with John Sullivan finding the net 4 minutes later. As the game continued, both sides looked happy to take a draw, and 1-1 was the final score.

Our penultimate game saw us travel to Shelbourne. It was a poor display overall by the team and we fell behind deservedly in the 28th minute goal, after some poor defensive work. As the game continued, Shelbourne had opportunities to extend their lead, but failed to capitalise on them, something which could and would bite them in the bottom as the game came to it's conclusion. Firstly David O'Connor equalised from a corner in the 82nd minute, before 3 minutes later, the ball fell to Sean Maguire in a crowded penalty area and he managed to slot home from 8 yards to get us a victory we hardly deserved. 3 points all the same and we went away happy with the points, but knowing that we couldn't switch off as we went to the last game of the season.

For our last game we traveled to rivals St Pat's Athletic hoping to end the season on a high, and the players didn't let me down. We took the lead 5 minutes before half-time as Carl Finnigan found the net and the score at half-time was 1-0. St Pat's Athletic came out after half-time much brighter and grabbed a deserved goal on 57 minutes. As the game was drawing to a close, there was only one man who could have the final say on what had been an incredible season for him and also for us, as Sean Maguire scored an 88th minute winner, giving us all three points on the last day of the season, taking his tally in the league to 24, and his overall tally for the season to 32 in 44 appearances!



The final league table looked like this, and we had finished the season strongly to secure second place in the league, finishing ten points behind Shamrock Rovers, but five points ahead of third placed Dundalk. I was then awarded the Manager of the Month award for October, for going the month unbeaten, and due to our strong finish to the season.



It had also been a fantastic month for David O'Connor who was awarded the Player of the Month award for some fantastic displays at the heart of defense, no doubt part of the reason behind our unbeaten month.



Sean Maguire was awarded the Golden Boot for the league, after scoring 24 goals in a fantastic season for him, and was also included in the team of the year alongside another player who had been fantastic for us in John Sullivan.





Overall it had been a very pleasing season for us, having defended our Munster Senior Cup and also winning the Irish League Cup. We had also advanced up the league from last season, and secured our ambition at the beginning of the season, of European Football. With a bit of luck and some good signings we would be able to push on next year, and look at challenging for the title, as well as securing the only other trophy needed in Ireland (barring the Division One title), which was the Senior Challenge Cup!

As the players left on holiday for the winter, the usual securing contracts of key players, with Sean Maguire tied down to a new 3 year contract, as well as beginning to scout out new players for the team began, with hopes and expectations high of what to expect as we approached the new season.

September was an extremely important month for us as we faced the beginning of the run-in towards the end of the season in the league, as well as the important Irish League Cup final.



Our first game of the month we welcomed relegated Limerick F.C. to Turner's Cross and a good start saw Carl Finnigan open the scoring and put us ahead in the 19th minute. Limerick managed to grab an equaliser in the 38th minute following some poor defending. In the second-half, no matter how hard we pushed to get a second goal, we were unable to through to some good goalkeeping and some poor finishing. The game ended 1-1, and can only be viewed as 2 points dropped in an important run of games.

Our next game saw us take on Shelbourne in the Senior Challenge Cup quarter-final. In a tight game of few chances, the only goal came after 74 minutes as Shelbourne finished after some good team play. We had chances to equalise, but some poor finishing cost us, and it sent us crashing out of the cup, and it would be at least another season before we would be able to claim the trophy.

We then traveled to Sligo Rovers and a good defensive display saw us come away with a point after a 0-0 draw.

The next game was the very important Irish League Cup Final where we would face St Pat's Athletic. A brilliant first half display saw us race into a 3-0 lead, with goals coming from [b]Ian Sweeney, Carl Finnigan and John Sullivan. At half-time the score was 3-0 and we had one hand on the trophy. It would require a real turn of events for us to end up losing the game now, and despite St Pat's Athletic pulling one back in the 58th minute, there was too much for them to do, and we ran out as 3-1 winners, winning our second piece of silverware this season!



Our final game of the month was against U.C.D. back at Turner's Cross. Fresh from our cup victory, morale was high and we went into the game full of confidence. Sean Maguire grabbed the only goal of the game in the 15th minute as he picked up the ball near the centre circle, waltzed past two defenders and placed a powerful shot into the bottom corner. We had lots of other chances during the game, but we were unable to finish them, however U.C.D. were also unable to finish any of their limited chances and we ran out as 1-0 winners.



At the end of the month, and with 5 games remaining we sat in 4th place in the table. Unfortunately the title was now almost certainly beyond our grasp, but we were still looking good for a European place so we could enter the Europa League next season. We had managed to tick off our sixth trophy this season as we won the Irish League Cup, but we had also crashed out of the Senior Challenge Cup. With only the league left to concentrate on, all we had to do was ensure that we would qualify for Europe, and gain the extra revenue that would bring.

Shame to see you leave that club, but it looked like you had little choice! At least you have fallen on your feet landing the job at Hadjuk! Can see you storming through Croatia now before moving onto Czech Republic!

Looks like it was a great move for you to Kobenhavn and a great start to the season as well!

A quieter August brought only 6 games for us to play.



Our first game of the month saw us travel to Waterford as we attempted to return to our winning ways, and two first-half Sean Maguire goals looked to have won it for us until we seemed to switch off in the last 15 minutes, and two goals from Waterford saw them rescue a draw, much to my annoyance.

Our next game was an opportunity against Longford to reach our second cup final of the season and it couldn't have started any worse for us as we fell behind after 9 minutes. James Kavenagh brought us back 5 minutes later, powering home from the edge of the box. The rest of the half was a very end to end game, both sides having chances but with both keepers in good form, neither team was able to take the lead. The second-half started brilliantly for us, as John Sullivan put us into the lead for the first time in the game, scoring in the 49th minute, cooly finishing when the ball fell to him from a corner. The game ended 2-1 and we were through to the final, where we would face Shelbourne.

Our next game was away against Shamrock Rovers who had been on a fantastic recent run of form. We quickly silenced the crowd, with Ian Sweeney putting us ahead after 4 minutes before Sean Maguire doubled our advantage in the 9th minute. Shamrock Rovers managed to get a goal back just before half-time which was a disappointing end to a first-half we had dominated. After the break, Shamrock Rovers were soon level, scoring 2 minutes after the restart. They then took the lead in the 69th minute, and further extended their lead in the 74th before Jacques Morley reduced the gap in the 84th minute. We then had a penalty shout turned down and the game ended 4-3. It was a game that we deserved to take something from, and on another day we would have won, however the game plan used by Shamrock saw them injure 3 of our players without even being shown a yellow card, which caused us to really struggle unfortunately, but it was a game in which we could hold our heads high after our performance and move on from with confidence.



Our next game we returned to Turner's Cross and welcomed Derry City. In a poor first half, neither side really had any opportunities and the score at half-time was 0-0. It took until the 62nd minute for Sean Maguire to open the scoring to put us ahead. Disaster struck in the closing minutes as a poor backpass was seized upon and Derry City equalised with no time remaining for us to regain our lead and the game ended 1-1.

Another cup game was up next as we faced Col. Corinthians in the Senior Challenge Cup. We began very well as Carl Finnigan put us in the lead after only 2 minutes. There was a long wait for the next goal as despite creating many chances, the younger players and fringe players that had been picked seemed incapable to finish until Gerry Byrne settled the game in injury time to make the scoreline look a slightly more respectable 2-0.

Our final league game of the month and we welcomed Mervue Utd to Turner's Cross. In a very dull first half of very few chances, it had the feeling of the teams just feeling each other out, and trying to find weaknesses and we went in at the break with the scores tied at 0-0. We came back out in the second-half looking like the side who wanted to make something happen more and Sean Maguire did just that by opening the scoring in the 68th minute to put us 1-0 up. A late penalty in the 84th minute which Sean Maguire converted for his second of the game, and his sixth in four league games, to ensure that victory would be ours, and also claim the Player of the Month award.





At the end of the month we still sat in third in the league table, yet with a gap no opening up with the top two teams, and fourth place had been able to close the gap with us, and could even overtake us if they were able to win their two games they have in hand. With eight games left it was important that we go back to winning games, and not allow the gap to close between us and fourth place and just hope that the two teams above us would start to slip up and drop points.

So we returned to league action after a short mid-season break and faced 7 games in July altogether, including our first chance at silverware this season, and also a possibility of defending our Munster Senior Cup.



We began the month by traveling to U.C.D. and in a fantastic first-half, John Mountney gave us the best possible start by scoring within 2 minutes of the kickoff. Sean Maguire doubled our lead on 9 minutes scoring a fantastic individual effort, picking the ball up just inside their half and ghosting past 3 defenders before accurately finding the bottom corner of the net. Johnny Dunleavey then made it 3-0 with 10 minutes of the first-half remaining, and the teams went in at half time with the score at 3-0. In the second-half, I'm not quite sure what happened, but all of a sudden we seemed to forget how to defend as U.C.D. pulled one back in the 59th minute and began to look extremely threatening. They did manage to pull it back to 3-2 with 6 minutes remaining, but fortunately couldn't find an equaliser, and we extended our winning run.

Next up was the Munster Senior Cup final against Limerick. We were heavy favourites to win, particularly on the back of our recent form, and also the dire form of Limerick so far this season, who are yet to win a game in the league, and the game followed the bookies, with us running out very comfortable 4-0 winners with goals coming from Danny Murphy, Kalen Spillane, Sean Maguire and a Kevin Cuthbert own goal. It meant that we had retained the Munster Senior Cup and the fans were delighted.



Back to the league, and our next game we welcomed Shelbourne to Turner's Cross. In a tight game, Gerry Byrne managed to grab the only goal of the game in the 37th minute, however we didn't deserve to win this game and it was only down to the poor finishing by Shelbourne that they didn't score.

Another home game against St Pat's Athletic was up next, and our luck finally ran out as we went down 1-0 thanks to a goal right on the stroke of half-time. We were perhaps slightly unfortunate not to get anything from the game as we had the better chances, but we were long overdue some bad luck, and it came during this game.

Hoping to immediately bounce back from our first league loss in a long time, we traveled to Dundalk with a real chance of creating a gap between ourselves and Dundalk who were in third place with a victory here. Unfortunately a terrible performance from the players resulted in a 3-0 loss, a scoreline which flattered us on the day, and Dundalk really should have scored another 2 or 3 goals. It was a terrible performance and I was worried about the impact it would have on morale as we moved forward to what had now become a very important match against Mervue Utd.

We traveled then to Mervue Utd hoping to stop the recent poor run of results, and for much of the game we looked the better side, although we were struggling to create chances. Disaster struck in the 80th minute when Mervue took the lead, but an instant response from Carl Finnigan saw us peg them back, and the game finished 1-1, stopping the losses, but was still a disappointing result in a game that if we wanted to challenge for the title we really should have been winning.

Our final league game of the month saw us travel to Limerick who had still not won a game in the league this season. They continued with their poor form as we appeared to return to some of the slick and impressive football we had been displaying over the past few months. Sean Maguire opened the scoring for us in the 11th minute, and although we had chances, we couldn't extend the lead by half-time. The second-half began very well for us, with Christian Peters doubling our lead in the 48th minute before Sean Maguire scored his second of the game in the 63rd minute to settle the game which ended 3-0.



After a month where we had finally lost, we were still sitting in a promising position in the league in third place and three points behind the league leaders. We had also managed to open up a 10 point gap on fourth place, which could become important if we were to qualify for European football and go on another poor run of form. We had also successfully defended our Munster Senior Cup so despite some negatives during the month, overall it had been a good month, and one that we would be able to push on from and continue with our title challenge.

Isn't looking too good at the moment for you! I'm sure you will be able to turn it around though!

We have been very fortunate with some of our victories but hopefully we can keep up the good form!

That's a great achievement! No doubt down to your fortunes at the club in some small way!

As we moved into the mid-season break, we still had two incredibly important league games to play before we could relax for 10 days and then face some cup games. It meant that we faced 5 games during the month, which also included a friendly against our affiliate club at Douglas Hall.



Our first game of the month saw us play one of our games in hand against league leaders Shamrock Rovers. A fantastic defensive display by the team saw us greatly limit the number of chances they were able to have during the game, and we took our only real clear cut chance of the entire game, with Gerry Byrne slotting home the all important goal 4 minutes before half-time. We were really holding on in the second-half as we just seemed to be unable to keep the ball or get out of our half, but some poor finishing from Shamrock saw us take all three points.

Our next game, and our final league game for a few weeks was against St Pat's Athletic. A fierce game against our rivals saw 5 yellow cards dished out during the game. We took the lead through Sean Maguire in the 38th minute, as he finished a very nicely worked goal, and we lead 1-0 at the break. With the intention to keep the style of play up in the second half, it couldn't have started any better really, as 10 minutes in we were 2-0 thanks to a John Sullivan free-kick, scored from all of 47 metres, after he noticed the keeper off his line! We continued to look solid at the back, and look threatening when going forward, but the scores remained the same, and we continued our fine form in the league.

A friendly game against Douglas Hall was up next, and gave me an opportunity to play some of the fringe players. Unfortunately they did not perform to their best ability and saw me have to bring on some of the first team players to win the game. (I know it's only a friendly, but I really hate losing!!) Two Sean Maguire goals in the last 10 minutes, and a Johnny Dunleavey goal won the game for us, but overall it had been a poor display against much inferior opposition.

The first of our two cup games was up next as we faced Waterford Utd in the Munster Senior Cup. A brilliant start saw John Mourtney put us ahead within 60 seconds and the scores remained that way until right at the end we were awarded a penalty, which was dispatched by Sean Brosnan to give us a 2-0 victory and saw us advance to the final where we would play Limerick F.C..

Our last game of the month was against non-league Tralee Dynamos in the Irish League Cup. A very professional display by the team saw Johnny Dunleavey open the scoring after five minutes, before Sean Maguire extended our lead either side of half time and a final Declan Duffy goal in the 67th minute, scoring his first goal for the club, saw us come away with a 4-0 victory and advance through to the semi-finals.



A second month which we had gone unbeaten in, although this month we had been very fortunate in our victory against Shamrock Rovers, saw us sit in third place in the table, 3 points behind leaders Shamrock, but with a game in hand over them. Some good victories in the cups saw us progress through as well, and another cup final appearance in the Munster Senior Cup gave us a good opportunity to defend our title, but also to give some younger players the opportunity to experience a cup final.

If we were able to continue our good run of form, where we have ridden our luck from time to time, then a shot at the title was a real possibility, however still extremely unlikely, but we moved into the second half of the season full of hope and still with the chance of winning a quadruple!

Thats a shame about the bug, you were doing really well! Especially with Bosnia qualifying for the World Cup!

On a completely unrelated note to the career, have just noticed after going through the January transfers on the BBC website, that Sean Maguire joined West Ham! Maybe I should let them know how good he has been for me in this!

I'm sure you will manage to find a job soon! Are they all lower league clubs in Denmark?

I know! Everything is looking good so far! Expect some more updates tomorrow as haven't got any lectures so can plow through a few months. Hopefully this form will continue!

looking good there buddy!

Congrats on finishing another country! Onto Denmark and then England?

We faced six games in May, including opportunities to advance in two of the three cup competitions that we faced this season. Hoping to continue the good run of form we had shown through the previous month we began it by welcoming U.C.C. to Turner's Cross in the Munster Senior Cup.



With the trophy having already been ticked off the list, it gave me an opportunity to play some of the fringe/younger players in the squad alongside some more experienced players, and they didn't disappoint. We won a penalty in the 19th minute, which Sean Maguire duly dispatched to make it 1-0. In bright start to the second-half saw Sean Maguire double our lead and his goal tally scoring his second of the game, and also his tenth of the season so far. A number of substitutions then took place, allowing more of the youngsters the opportunity of first team football and we saw the game out 2-0.

Back to the league, and we were faced with a tough game against Sligo Rovers who had been on fine form so far this season. In an action packed first-half, both sides had a number of chances, however Sligo probably deserved to be ahead. A much better second-half saw Sligo take the lead in the 59th minute through a bit of a freak goal, an intended cross looping over goalkeeper Paul White and into the top corner, before Sean Maguire took control of the game by the scruff of the neck, firstly equalising in the 63rd minute, and then putting us ahead five minutes later. He managed to complete his hat-trick with time running out in the 89th minute, seizing upon a poor backpass before rounding the keeper and slotting home into the open net. A fantastic 3-1 win saw us claim a big scalp in our push towards the European places.

A home game against Waterford Utd was up next, and in a game which we dominated, it looked as though our luck had run out as the game wore on, hitting the woodwork on a number of occasions as well as some fantastic stops from their keeper. With time running out, and a 0-0 draw looking the likely outcome, John Sullivan managed to slot home an 88th minute winner through a crowded penalty area to keep our run going.

An away game against Derry City, who had gone on an alarming slide down the table since the last time we had faced them was next up, and the difference in confidence between the two sides was more than apparent. Derry City started the game well, creating some good chances, but a penalty in the 8th minute, which Gerry Byrne converted deflated them. A second goal from Byrne 12 minutes later saw the game over practically within the first 20 minutes, and Derry rarely threatened after that. A third goal 15 minutes into the second half from Kalen Spillane put the game well and truly beyond doubt, and we ran out comfortable 3-0 victors.

Up next was a potential banana skin game against relegated Drogheda Utd in the Senior Challenge Cup at United Park. A strong team was played for the game to try and ensure that we did advance, and two first half goals was all we needed to ensure we did. John Mountney gave us the lead in the 13th minute, finishing neatly after a good run into the box, and the lead was doubled 13 minutes later by Kalen Spillane, scoring a powerful volley from a corner. Drogheda had very few chances throughout the game, and we ran out comfortable 2-0 winners.

Our final league game of the month was at home against Longford who had been having a bit of a shocker in the league so far, sitting in the relegation play-off spot. A Sean Maguire (who else!) goal in the 16th minute opened the scoring, before Longford equalised just before the half-hour mark. A second Sean Maguire goal, and his 15th of the season in 17 appearances in the 67th minute restored our advantage, and we comfortably soaked up some late pressure from Longford to ensure that victory was ours, and continued our fine run of form.



After a brilliant month, going unbeaten in all competitions we were sat in 4th place with two games in hand over 2nd place Sligo who were only 3 points above us. It had also been a fantastic month for Sean Maguire who managed to score 7 goals during the month, yet was not awarded player of the month, or even came in the top 3! If we were able to win our games in hand over the teams above us in the league, it would put us in an extremely strong position to push on and possibly even challenge for the title!