Cork City's auditions continue against playoff-chasing Athlone Town

Three First Division games left to play and another away trip to the Midlands awaits Barry Robson’s Cork City team. They take on Athlone Town tonight at 7.45pm, looking to secure a second win in five.

Athlone come into this evening’s clash with a six-game unbeaten league run, having won four of those games, with their playoff hopes requiring another victory. They currently sit seventh, two places outside the playoffs, but are only a point behind Cobh Ramblers in fifth and four behind UCD in third.

It’s turned into an exciting battle for the coveted places. Bray are currently positioned as best of the rest in second with 53 points, four ahead of UCD, and another victory will secure their place in the promotion conversation.

But UCD, Longford, Cobh, Kerry and Athlone are all well in the fight, with every point from now until the end of the season crucial. This is absolutely a must-win for Athlone, and with City having nothing to play for, they have a great chance.

The Leesiders rotated heavily last Saturday against Longford and fell to a 2-1 defeat, as Matthew Murray, Joe Aidoo, Luke Downey and David Odumosu were all handed rare starts. The three outfielders were withdrawn before the finish, and one of those replacements in Greg Bolger came off the bench to net a late consolation, while academy prospect Denzell Obenge got his chance as a substitute.

That loss has likely killed City’s chances of surpassing the 2024 tally of 78 points in a First Division season.

The only other thing left to fight for is the golden boot showdown between Ruairí Keating, Seani Maguire and Hans Mpongo. Keating currently leads the way with 18, ahead of Maguire on 16, while Mpongo has 14 goals this campaign. None of the three scored last time out.

In the other three meetings between Cork City and Athlone this year, the Leesiders have won all three games, scoring at least three in every game, with the last visit to the Athlone Town Stadium ending in a 3-0 victory, as Mpongo scored twice and Conor Drinan netted once.

Defenders James Crawford and Evan O’Connor have had good seasons for the hosts while Aaron Connolly has been a hard-working presence in the middle third. He’s contributed three assists so far, while Peter Grogan is their current top scorer with nine goals to his name.

More rotation is expected this evening as Robson looks to protect the first team starters with one eye on next year, given how small City’s squad has been for the entirety of this campaign.

Aside from the obvious need to add new bodies to the squad ahead of their return to the Premier Division, the disconnect between the fans and the club ownership remains a problem. 

On several occasions over the past couple of seasons we’ve seen protests at Turner’s Cross, most notably in last year’s FAI Cup semi-final win against St Pat’s.

Concern

That issue has remained dormant for much of this year, despite threatening an eruption on a handful of occasions. But, if City end up enduring another troubling start to life in the Premier Division – which has happened in each of their previous two campaigns in the top flight – that dissatisfaction will rise to prominence once more.

Talk has surfaced around the ownership of the club in recent weeks, with a US consortium spearheaded by Shane Lohman and Monarch Sports Partners expressing interest in the club, which is majority-owned by Dermot Usher and has been since the beginning of 2023.

For now, though, such matters remain well above the heads of the players and Barry Robson. The manager’s concern will be navigating a tricky trip to the Midlands, against an Athlone team who have every reason to be confident. City's perfect record versus the hosts this season may count for little.