In-form Cobh Ramblers face Longford Town seeking fourth win on bounce

Cobh Ramblers are out to record their fourth consecutive victory this evening when they host Longford Town at St. Colman’s Park, kick 7:45pm.

Fran Rockett and his players will go into this game fifth in the table, and the right combination of results could put them in second place at the end of the night.

The transformation has been remarkable following a rough run that saw just one win in the opening seven games, then came a perfect weekend as Cobh saw off Kerry and Treaty United.

The Ramblers travelled to Finn Harps last week and second half goals from Garry Buckley and Rhys Kelly Noonan helped the club take all three points in Donegal. 

Timothy Martin was the difference maker at the other end of the pitch, as the goalkeeper made a string of saves that kept Cobh in the game before they took the lead.

The Ramblers are now targeting a fourth consecutive league win, something last achieved by the club between April-May 2025.

A lot has changed since then, beginning with the replacement of Mick McDermott with Rockett as manager. 

There’s also been movement in the squad with the departures of Jonas Hakkinen, John O’Donovan, Niall O’Keeffe, Cian Bargary, Cian Murphy, and Barry Coffey. 

The international battalion that arrived were also broken up as Iestyn Hughes went to Bangor in the Irish League, while Rhys Gourdie chose to stay.

The Scottish midfielder has been a light in darkness as the club managed the transition under the new coach, with a host of new signings and underage prospects stepping up. 

It took some time for things to come together, as moments of promise shown against Cork City and Finn Harps were compounded by tough defeats to UCD and Wexford.

The Ramblers came through this stretch, while battling a raft of first-team injuries, and by doing so they stumbled upon a system that is working.

That is a traditional 4-2-3-1 with Lucas Curtin, a graduate of the U20s, stepping in at left back in the absence of Shane T. Griffin and thriving in that role. 

Callum Honohan is able to play on the right in the absence of Luka Le Bervet, and Gourdie is the engine in the middle of the park that links everything together.

Dylan McGlade is also thriving on the left, something shown to the masses over the Easter Weekend as he got five goals including a hat-trick against Treaty United at St. Colman’s Park.

Everyone knows their role and what is expected of them, with the likes of Wilson Waweru and Anthony Adenopo coming off the bench to add energy into the forward line in the fourth quarter.

Everything is coming together and Cobh now have a chance to go second should they take all three points from their meeting with Longford, a scenario that will come true if other results go their way.

The most important thing at this time of the year is to keep plugging away and staying with the pack that includes Wexford, UCD, Bray Wanderers, Athlone Town, and Finn Harps.

Longford Town could be in the mix if they get something from Friday’s game at St. Colman’s Park, and Wayne Grove is itching to see his team build on last weekend’s victory over Bray at Bishopsgate.

Andy Paraschiv got that game’s only goal in the 71st minute, and that gave his side just their second win of the season.

The Ramblers have already played Longford this year, and they edged out their far away rivals 2-1 last February at Bishopsgate. Rhys Brennan and Honohan got the goals that night in the first half, before Aaron Doran pulled one back in the 67th minute.

Rockett’s side have matured since that night in the midlands, but injury issues persist. Shane C. Griffin remains sidelined through injury, while Le Bervet is still working his way back to full fitness.

Cian Coleman is also expected to miss out, with the defender out since last March’s 2-0 defeat to Athlone Town.

Those that remain are out for another win, as Cobh look to assert their play-off credentials.