Cobh Ramblers hoping to make home advantage pay against Treaty United

Cobh Ramblers will aim to record just their third win since the mid-season break when they welcome Treaty United to St Colman’s Park this evening, kick-off 7:45pm.

The club will go into this game seventh in the table, after moving up to third when they beat Wexford last Friday.

The Kerry game on Monday at Mounthawk Park has rattled the cage, and now it is all about getting back on the saddle after conceding three goals in 42 minutes.

Cobh had nothing to offer after Cian Murphy scored a brace and Sean McGrath found the back of the net after a sublime run. 

They did draw Matthew Connor into a handful of stretched saves through efforts from Rhys Gourdie and Dylan McGlade, but even then, the goalkeeper looked comfortable.

The Ramblers are now hoping to bounce back against an improving Treaty United side that will make the journey to St Colman's Park in eighth place with 29 points from 26 games.

There was a time when Tommy Barrett's team were struggling after starting the season with three consecutive losses and back to back draws.

Treaty even lost to Ringmahon Rangers in the Munster Senior Cup, a rare upset in a competition where League of Ireland teams tend to dominate.

The improvement came in the summer months, as if the midseason break was spent in a training block designed to get things right.

Treaty are now on a run that will see four wins in their last five league game, and a loss to Longford Town at the Markets Field.

They faced promotion challengers UCD on Monday in Belfield and enjoyed a 2-1 win, one of their best performances and results of the season.

Mikey McCullagh gave the Students the lead at the beginning of the second half, and Cian Curtis equalised with his ninth of the season.

The winner came in the 66th minute, off Curtis header turned in by Dara Kavanagh for an own goal.

Treaty held out from there, with goalkeeper Jack Brady ensuring of the three points by producing a run of excellent string of saves late in the game.

The Shannonsiders now turn their attention to Cobh, knowing that a win on the Great Island will give them a serious platform to build on in the race for the play-offs.

Cobh used to be regulars in the top five, but their poor form since the midseason break has seen them drop from third to seventh. 

They even had a small cushion to protect them, but that evaporated as they recorded just two wins through June and July.

Rockett is desperate to course correct, that has been evident in the club's activity in the transfer market over the last five weeks.

Dara McCormick and Ronan Mansfield were the first brought on, from Cork City on a permanent contract and Waterford on loan.

Jordan Adeyemi followed, and he has already tallied a goal and an assist since arriving at St Colman's Park.

Jonas Stjernberg moved to the Great Island last week, after playing for Fyllingsdalen in Norway.

Enzo Dietrich was recruited to add depth in defence from Hong Kong FC, along with Waterford academy graduate Alan Zborowski.

The newcomers will face a Treaty side that Cobh have already beaten twice this year, at home and at the Markets Field.

Their first meeting was on Easter Monday and Dylan McGlade scored a first half hat-trick and Kai O'Neill got one as the Ramblers took the three points at St. Colman's Park.

Their meeting in Limerick included Curtis giving Treaty the lead on the hour mark and Wilson Waweru equalising. That game was decided by a McGlade penalty in the first minute of time added on.

The Shannonsiders now have form on their side, and a very real chance of getting into the play-offs.

This is a huge game for Cobh, especially with the way things went at Mounthawk Park on Monday.

The Ramblers need points and must make the most of home advantage over the next two months. 

Otherwise, their promotion push will fall short, leaving another winter of “what if” on the Great Island, a feeling the club knows all too well after near misses in 2020 and 2024.