No comfort for Cork

NATIONAL LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION: Cork City 0 Sligo Rovers 0

CORK CITY and Sligo Rovers met for the seventh time this season at Turner’s Cross last night as the sides played out a scoreless draw in front of a disappointing attendance of 1,377. Not for the first time in recent months, Cork have been in the news for all the wrong reasons over the past few days.

The squad’s journey to Richmond Park to play St Patrick’s Athletic on Friday was delayed by two hours after their bus company refused to travel until outstanding debts were settled. Bizarrely, the same company were last night’s match sponsors.

Several hundred Cork City supporters also staged a protest at last night’s game, refusing to enter the ground until 10 minutes after kick-off in order to express their displeasure at the manner in which the club is being run by chairman Tom Coughlan.

Cork, who came in to the game on the back of Friday’s 1-1 draw with St Patrick’s, were without captain Dan Murray, Joe Gamble and Greg O’Halloran. Sligo boss Paul Cook made just one change from Friday’s 2-1 home defeat to Shamrock Rovers, with Eoin Doyle starting on the left wing ahead of Dean Marshall.

Chances were scarce in the first half but Cork winger Davin O’Neill was a constant threat, forcing an excellent save from Richard Brush with a low drive from wide on the right after 40 minutes. Sligo came close to making the breakthrough in the 16th minute but Danny Ventre’s strike from just outside the box was deflected on to the crossbar by Kevin Long.

The best chance of the second half fell to Cork substitute Faz Kuduzovic in the 77th minute but he was denied from close range by Brush. Sligo were marginally the better side but had to settle for a share of the spoils which keeps them four points clear of Bray at the foot of the table.

CORK CITY:Connor; Horgan, Mulcahy, Long, Murphy; ONeill, Lordan, ODonnell, Dennehy; Silagailis (Kuduzovic, 75 mins), Cambridge.

SLIGO ROVERS:Brush; Boco, Keane, Peers, Kendrick; Cash (Turner, 80 mins), Ventre (Ryan, 71 mins), OGrady, Doyle (Marshall, 59 mins); Blinkhorn, Cretaro.

Referee:N Doyle (Dublin).