Title march steps up a gear

Encounters between these two could be relied on to provide some good entertainment over the past couple of seasons, but the growing gap between them was underlined last night at Tolka Park when Cork City's challenge for a place in Europe received another body blow and Shelbourne took another step towards their ninth National League title.

Dave Barry's side arrived in Drumcondra looking for their first win in six league matches, but Dermot Keely's men have been gathering momentum of late and as their only remaining rivals for the championship endured a miserable evening up the road at Dalymount, Shelbourne dismantled a City team that could offer very little resistance at one end and posed virtually no threat at the other.

For City, the problems were apparent from early in the first period. Barry opted to start the game with one full back, Gareth Cronin, playing in front of another, Stephen Napier, on the left flank in an attempt to counter the threat of Richie Baker. But Baker's habit of making darting runs from deep positions caused City all sort of difficulties and his brother made the most of the defensive confusion, repeatedly popping up out wide on the right where neither Napier nor Declan Daly could cope with his speed going forward.

The Shelbourne striker was at the heart of all three of the first-half moves that ended with goals for the home side. For the first, his initial ball into area found Paul Doolin who, in turn, looked to have set up Stephen Geoghegan. When he failed to control, however, City managed to clear as far as Pat Fenlon just outside the area and his shot left Phil Harrington with little chance of making the save.

Within three minutes it was 2-0, with Baker this time shrugging off Daly's challenge inside the area before leaving Geoghegan with no more to do than pick his spot.

Then, although the 22-year-old looked to have strayed offside before Doolin put him clear two minutes before the break, he played his part cooly, this time setting up James Keddy for the goal from no more than 10 yards out.

From a team that has had problems scoring in the league for long spells this season, the goals were a sign of the growing confidence within the Shelbourne camp as the club closes in on its first championship title since 1992. Even allowing for the general impoverishment of Cork City's defending, this was Fenlon's third goal in three National League games, Geoghegan's fourth in four.

Barry acted to shore things up at the break by switching to a more attacking approach with John Caulfield coming on for Stephen Napier and Ollie Cahill reverting to the left side of midfield. It worked and Shelbourne's fourth came after Gareth Cronin's high back pass caught Harrington in two minds for long enough to allow Richie Baker in. As the under-21 international made his way back after a subdued celebration, the managers looked on impassively from under the main stand - one knowing how close to completion his task is now, the other realising perhaps just how much will need to be done by his successor.

SHELBOURNE: O'Leary; Heary, Scully, McCarthy, Hutchison; R Baker, Doolin, Fenlon, Keddy; D Baker, S Geoghegan. Subs: Campbell for Doolin (76 mins).

CORK CITY: Harrington; O'Halloran, Daly, Coughlan, Napier; O'Brien, Freyne, Herrick, Cronin; Morley, Cahill. Subs: Caulfield for Napier (halftime), Hill and O'Brien for Coughlan and Herrick (81 mins).

Referee: D O'Hanlon (Waterford).