Cobh crumble to 'Farm
The lights may have remained on but there was a feeling that no one was home at St. Colman’s Park when the home side’s defence gifted Home Farm the winning goal and waved goodbye to the three points in their eircom First Division clash.
After 85 minutes the Cobh back four were caught napping by Home Farm’s Stuart Byrne when he split the defence to toe poke the ball past the advancing John Donegan to the back of the net and claim the three points.
It his was rough justice indeed for Cobh as they did not deserve to be beaten and Home Farm scarcely deserved to win as neither side had shown anything resembling match winning performances.
On a night when inspiration and endeavour were sorely missing from the exchanges, the game quickly settled into a pattern of dull and lifeless football with goal chances kept to the bare minimum.
Indeed, apart from the goal both sides had only one real chance at breaking the deadlock and both came in the first half.
On 28 minutes Home Farm’s full back Keith O’Brien sent in a dangerous cross to the Cobh penalty area where Paddy Doyle rose highest but Donegan proved equal to the test.
Cobh’s only real chance of the game came about two minutes before the break when, after a scramble for the ball on the six yard line, Mark Clifford clipped the ball to Donal Golden. However, the strikers header was expertly saved by Paul Whelan.
These were the only real chances of a game that tested the concentration of both sets of players and it was Cobh who faltered five minutes from time when, with a share of the points on the table, they blinked and Byrne stepped into to decide the matter.

© The Examiner