Cork City F.C.
| Full name | Cork City Football Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Nickname(s) | "City", "Rebel Army" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Founded | 1984 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ground | Turners Cross, Cork, County Cork (Capacity: 7,500. All seated) |
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| Manager |  Alan Mathews |
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| League | FAI Premier Division | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | 5th | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Cork City F.C. (Irish: Cumann Peile Chathair Chorcaigh) is an Irish football club playing in the FAI Premier Division. Founded and elected to the league in 1984 to continue the long tradition of Association Football in Cork, its traditional colours are green and white with red trim. It was one of the first clubs in Ireland to field a team of professional footballers and certainly the first in Cork.
With the progression of professionalism at the club, continued development of the Turner's Cross stadium and the transition to summer football, the club has become one of the biggest and best supported clubs in the country.[1] In 2008 however the club entered a period of financial uncertainty and were placed under examinership for a time.[2]
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History
Pre-1980s
The current Cork City is not the first club to use the name. During the 1920s, together with Fordsons, Cork Bohemians, Cobh Ramblers and Cork Celtic a Cork City fielded teams in both the Munster Junior League and the Munster Senior League. [3] Another Cork City played in the League of Ireland for just one season, 1938-39. [4] With a team that included Owen Madden, Tom Davis and Jackie O'Driscoll, they also won the Munster Senior Cup in 1939. This club evolved from the earlier Cork clubs, Fordsons F.C. and Cork F.C., and played its home games at the Mardyke. For the 1939-40 season they changed their name to Cork United and became the league's most successful club during the 1940s. They then became Cork Athletic before eventually folding in 1958. Their place in the league was taken by Cork Hibernians.
1980s
In 1984 senior football returned to Leeside when a new Cork City FC was founded by officials from several Cork clubs (including Cork United and Avondale United), and the new club was elected to the League of Ireland. Former Chelsea and Cork Celtic hero Bobby Tambling was the first manager appointed to the club, but he was replaced by Tony 'Tucker' Allen after only 13 games.
In its first and second seasons, the young club barely averted relegation to the new First Division - failing to win a single game at home in Flower Lodge and avoiding relegation only on goal difference. The FAI Cup offered some respite, however Shamrock Rovers knocked City out in the semi-finals - in the last match played at the Lodge.
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In 1986 the club moved to a new home at Turners Cross, where new manager Noel O’Mahony brought Cork to a midtable finish. The following year the club strived to inject a degree of professionalism, and former Ireland striker Eamon O'Keefe arrived as manager, delivering the Munster Senior Cup, and the League Cup (the club’s first national silverware).
Poor form and attendances cast doubts over O’Keefe’s tenure and there was an acrimonious parting of the ways in 1988. With Noel O’Mahony re-installed the side finished eighth in the league, and a loss to champions Derry City in the FAI Cup final earned the club its first European ticket.
They experienced gained in a 0-6 on aggregate defeat against the Russian side Torpedo Moscow inspired a fifth-place finish in the Premier Division, and the Munster Senior Cup was reclaimed.
1990s
The early 1990s was a positive period for the club, with lengthy unbeaten league runs, high league positions, retention of the Munster Senior Cup through 4 years, and good performances in Europe. The most notable European game was a gallant performance in a UEFA Cup tie with Bayern Munich, which saw City hold the German giants 1:1 at Musgrave Park before falling 0:2 to late goals in Bavaria. 1993 saw Cork City land the Premier Division title for the first time, after a complicated three team play-off. O'Mahoney resigned and the club moved to a new stadium in Bishopstown at the end of the season.
Damien Richardson took the helm and the 1993/94 season began with City coming from three goals down to beat Welsh side Cwmbran Town in the UEFA Champions League. Their reward was a trip to Istanbul and odd-goal defeats both home and away to Galatasaray. City ended up finishing in runners up position in the league.
1994/95 was a tumultuous season for Cork City. After a bright start to the season, financial pressures forced Richardson to resign and with Bishopstown not being developed to plan, games were switched to Cobh, Turners Cross, and even an enforced trip to Tolka Park. O'Mahony was re-appointed as manager but the title challenge collapsed and neither Munster Senior Cup nor League Cup successes could ease the sense of foreboding.
At the start of the 1995/96 season Rob Hindmarch took the reins, but the club was in trouble. With the stadium dragging it under, the receiver was called in and the club left homeless. Efforts to save the situation saw a new Board installed and a move back to Turners Cross. Penniless, Hindmarch had skimmed along but relegation still threatened, and a Cup exit saw Dave Barry appointed. The team scrambled to ninth in the league, and for the first time in five years City lost the Munster Cup - to junior side Waterford Glass.
1996/97 saw City finish fourth place. The club narrowly lost out on League Cup glory with an unexpected loss to First Division Galway United. Crowds began to increase, and the Munster Senior Cup was recaptured. The following season Cork performed admirably in the InterToto Cup and the team improved to third in the league. Dave Barry's reign reached its high point in that year, when City won the 1998 FAI Cup, beating Shelbourne 1-0 in a replayed final at Dalymount Park. Cork began the following season with eight straight wins but in the end had to settle for second place, as three defeats to champions St Patrick’s Athletic cost them dearly. After finishing runner up for the second season in a row in 1999/2000, Barry resigned to be replaced by Colin Murphy.
2000 - present
Murphy stayed for one FAI Super Cup game before departing to Leicester City just days before a crucial UEFA Cup game. His replacement, Derek Mountfield, lasted less than a season and was sacked after a poor run of results and losing the confidence of the players. Former player Liam Murphy took over and the team embarked on a 13-game unbeaten run that brought an Intertoto ticket and a tenth Munster Cup success.
In 2001, Colin Murphy returned to the headlines in Cork when a controversial link-up between City, English Premier League side Leicester City and local outfit Mayfield United was proposed. Fans protested the idea and it never materialised. After a poor season, the board of directors stepped down and local businessman Brian Lennox assumed full control of the club. Lennox was to lead the club to a new professional era.
2002 was most notable as a time of transition. Several older players, who had been a mainstay of the team in the 1990s, left the club or joined the coach staff. They were replaced by younger players - such as new signings George O'Callaghan, John O'Flynn and Dan Murray.
In February 2003 ex-St. Patrick's Athletic manager Pat Dolan was unveiled as the new boss and he led them to third place in the new summer season. Dolan's second season as City manager proved successful, both on a European and domestic level. City surpassed Malmö FF and NEC Nijmegen in the Intertoto Cup and second place in the league was secured.
Dolan was controversially sacked in pre-season 2005 and replaced by former manager Damien Richardson. He would lead Cork City to their second league championship. winning the league on the final day of the season with a 2-0 victory over second place Derry City. Cork City finished runners-up in the 2005 FAI Cup, losing to Drogheda United in the final at Lansdowne Road.
The 2006 season saw further upgrade work begin at Turners Cross. In Europe, City met Apollon Limassol and Red Star Belgrade in the UEFA Champions League (the latter eliminating City from the competition). The club lost to Drogheda United in the Setanta Cup Final, finished 4th in the league, and (owing to Derry City's F.A.I. Cup final win) secured a place in the Intertoto and Setanta Cup.
The 2007 season started with some controversy, as new signings Colin Healy and Gareth Farrelly were deemed ineligible for play by F.I.F.A. in a controversial dispute. This contributed to an inconsistent season start, with elimination from the Setanta Cup by Linfield, a home win against St. Pat's and a record-equaling 4-1 defeat to Sligo Rovers. In August 2007, star striker Roy O'Donovan joined FA Premiership side Sunderland for an eircom League record fee of €500,000. 2007 also saw the club's ownership change hands: from Chairman Brian Lennox to venture capital firm Arkaga. A mixed season was topped however by an FAI Cup win over Longford Town at the RDS. Before this win however, manager Damien Richardson's future at the club was already in doubt, and - after some controversy involving threatened high-court proceedings for unfair dismassal, and a financial settlement - Richardson and the club parted ways in December 2007.
In January 2008, former Longford Town boss Alan Mathews became manager, and the club signed Dave Mooney, Dave Mulcahy and Patrick Sullivan, and took advantage of FIFA's changes to the "3 club" rule by re-signing George O'Callaghan from Ipswich Town. However, after a slow start to the campaign and apparent dressing-room conflicts, Mathew's dropped O'Callaghan and he was released. City were knocked out of European competition by FC Haka of Finland in the first qualifying round. In the league, City fared reasonably well, with Dave Mooney retaining the league's top scorer spot. However, after failing to take any points from Bohemians or St. Pats, City finished fifth in the league - missing out on a European place. The club did however gain some silverware, beating Glentoran F.C. 2-1 in the final of the Setanta Sports Cup.
Off the pitch the club suffered a considerable threat when, in August 2008, after investment difficulties with venture capital firm Arkaga[5], the club entered into examinership.[6] With debts of up to €800,000, examiner Noel Hughes implemented cost cutting measures at the club. These included reductions in player and staff wages, and lay-offs of a number of staff members (including assistant manager David Hill).[7] Under related rules, the club was deducted 10 points in the league.[8] In October 2008 the High Court ruled in favour of Tom Coughlan's bid to take over the club, and ended the examinership.
Current squad
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Honours and records
Honours
| Title | Year/s |
|---|---|
| League of Ireland | 1992-93, 2005 |
| FAI Cup | 1998, 2007 |
| FAI League Cup | 1987-88, 1994-95, 1998-99 |
| Munster Senior Cup | 1987-88, 1989-90, 1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1996-97, 1997-98, 1998-99, 1999-00, 2000-01, 2001-02, 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2008 |
| Setanta Sports Cup | 2008 |
Records
| General | |
|---|---|
| Record league victory | (a) v Limerick 7-1, September 26, 1993 |
| Record league defeat | (a) v Derry City 2-7, August 27, 1987 |
| Longest unbeaten run | 24, April 1, 1990 - January 13, 1991 |
| Most Successive wins | 8, August 30, 1998 - October 18, 1998 |
| Appearances | |
| Most appearances | John Caulfield - 455 |
| Most starts | John Caulfield - 376 |
| Most consecutive starts | Michael Devine - 118 |
| Most substitute appearances | John Caulfield - 79 |
| League Goals | |
| Aggregate | John Caulfield - 129, Pat Morley - 129 |
| Season | Pat Morley - 20 (Twice) |
| Game | No Cork City player has scored more than 3 goals in a game. John O'Flynn (3 times), Ollie Cahill (2 times), John Caulfield (2 times), Kelvin Flanagan, Pat Morley, Roy O'Donovan (2 times) Denis Behan and Colin O'Brien have all scored a hat trick |
| Clean Sheets | Phil Harrington - 112 |
Hall of Fame
The "Cork City Official Supporters Club Hall of Fame" was inaugurated in 2006 - following a charity match between the Supporters Club and a "Legends" selection of past Cork City players.
| Year | Inductee |
|---|---|
| 2006 | Dave Barry |
| 2006 | Patsy Freyne |
| 2007 | Declan Daly |
| 2007 | Phil Harrington |
| 2008 | John Caulfield |
| 2008 | Pat Morley |
League placings
| Season | Points Total | Position | Season | Points Total | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984/85 | 28 | 9th | 1996/97 | 54 | 4th |
| 1985/86 | 13 | 10th | 1997/98 | 53 | 3rd |
| 1986/87 | 18 | 7th | 1998/99 | 70 | 2nd |
| 1987/88 | 34 | 7th | 1999/00 | 58 | 2nd |
| 1988/89 | 26 | 8th | 2000/01 | 56 | 3rd |
| 1989/90 | 37 | 5th | 2001/02 | 49 | 6th |
| 1990/91 | 50 | 2nd | 2002/03 | 39 | 4th |
| 1991/92 | 43 | 3rd | 2003 | 53 | 3rd |
| 1992/93 | 48 | 1st | 2004 | 65 | 2nd |
| 1993/94 | 59 | 2nd | 2005 | 74 | 1st |
| 1994/95 | 49 | 7th | 2006 | 56 | 4th |
| 1995/96 | 41 | 9th | 2007 | 55 | 4th |
European competition
Correct as of 9 July, 2007
| Competition | Played | Win | Draw | Lost | For | Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UEFA Champions League/European Cup | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 12 |
| UEFA Cup | 14 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 20 |
| UEFA Cup Winners' Cup | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 9 |
| UEFA Intertoto Cup | 16 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 11 | 13 |
| Total | 42 | 9 | 10 | 23 | 26 | 54 |
| Year | Competition | Opponents |
|---|---|---|
| 1989-90 | Cup Winners' Cup |  Torpedo Moscow |
| 1991-92 | UEFA Cup |  Bayern Munich |
| 1993-94 | European Cup |  Cwmbran Town |
| European Cup |  Galatasaray |
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| 1994-95 | UEFA Cup |  Slavia Prague |
| 1997-98 | Intertoto Cup |  Standard Liège |
| Intertoto Cup |  Maccabi Petah Tikva |
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| Intertoto Cup | FC Cologne |
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| Intertoto Cup |  FC Aarau |
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| 1998-99 | Cup Winners' Cup |  CSKA Kyiv |
| 1999-00 | UEFA Cup |  IFK Gothenburg |
| 2000-01 | UEFA Cup | Lausanne Sports |
| 2001-02 | Intertoto Cup |  FHK Liepājas Metalurgs |
| 2004-05 | Intertoto Cup | Malmö FF |
| Intertoto Cup |  NEC Nijmegen |
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| Intertoto Cup |  FC Nantes Atlantique |
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| 2005-06 | UEFA Cup |  Ekranas Panevezys |
| UEFA Cup | Djurgårdens IF |
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| UEFA Cup | Slavia Praha |
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| 2006-07 | Champions League |  Apollon Limassol |
| Champions League |  Crvena Zvezda |
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| 2007-08 | Intertoto Cup |  Valur |
| Intertoto Cup | Hammarby |
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| 2008-09 | UEFA Cup |  FC Haka |
Cork City managers
| Year/s | Manager |
|---|---|
| 1984 |  Bobby Tambling |
| 1984-85 | Tony 'Tucker' Allen |
| 1986 | Noel O'Mahoney |
| 1987 | Eamon O'Keefe |
| 1988-1992 | Noel O'Mahoney |
| 1992-93 | Damien Richardson |
| 1993-94 | Noel O'Mahoney |
| 1994-95 | Rob Hindmarch |
| 1995-2000 | Dave Barry |
| 2000 | Colin Murphy |
| 2000 | Derek Mountfield |
| 2000-2003 | Liam Murphy |
| 2003-2004 | Pat Dolan |
| 2005-2007 | Damien Richardson |
| 2008-Present | Alan Mathews |
Kit and colours
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| See: CorkCityFc.tk | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
The club's colours reflect the traditional colours of association football in Cork, green and white featuring heavily. Since the club's inception in 1984, the kits have also featured a red trim - influenced in part by the traditional Gaelic Athletic Association colours of County Cork. Over the years, these base colours have been worn in different combinations:[9] originally green and white hoops in 1984, then white shirts with green and red trim in 1989, etc.[10]
In 1997, the club broke with tradition to use a red and white kit - reminiscent of the popular Cork County GAA kits. Subsequently, the club reverted to the green and white theme in 2002, initially with white sidings rather than stripes, but eventually returning to green white and red stripes.[9]
Since 1984, the team has only worn a kit with a single solid colour once, and at that not by choice. In 2004, when visiting Intertoto cup opponents NEC Nijmegen, the referee deemed both Cities' kits to clash with both of NEC's, and the club was forced to hurriedly source a viable alternative while en route to the Netherlands. The team wore all-white with a makeshift crest and sponsorship.
There has been a recurring theme of black away kits - often with yellow trim - reflecting the kits of former Cork clubs.[9] In 2004 a Cork XI selection featuring many City players faced Bolton Wanderers, wearing yellow and black. Black again became the colour of the teams away jersey in 2008 with a jersey from Danish sports outfit Hummel.
Supporters groups and fanzines
At the last home match of 2006, long-running fanzine FourFiveOne announced that it was discontinuing, leaving "I was out there once!" (IWOTO)[11] and "Spreadin' the Dirt" as the remaining fanzine offerings. In the 2007 season a new fanzine, Going Commando was launched.
See also
- Football League of Ireland in Cork city
- Former Cork City FC players
References
- ↑ Sunday Business Post - "Eircom League rocked by Cork City’s financial difficulties" - Sunday, August 17, 2008 ("Cork City is one of the biggest and best supported teams in the league")
- ↑ RTÉ Sport - "Cork City come out of examinership" - Thursday, 16 October 2008
- ↑ Mallow United history
- ↑ bionicbohs.com
- ↑ Irish Examiner - "Arkaga defends its role at Cork City" - Monday, August 18, 2008
- ↑ Examinership is a process whereby the protection of the courts is obtained to assist the survival of an Irish limited company. See Administration (insolvency)
- ↑ http://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/eircom-league/costcutting-plan-leaves-cork-city-staring-into-abyss-1464491.html?r=RSS
- ↑ http://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/eircom-league/fai-docks-ten-points-from-cork-but-promises-to-help-solve-crisis-1465310.html?r=RSS
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 CorkCityFC.tk
- ↑ CorkCityFC.ie - Kits image
- ↑ IWOTO
External links
- Cork City F.C. Official Website
- Cork City Unofficial Forum
- Cork City Supporters Trust
- Cork City on FAI.ie
- Cork City F.C. Jerseys
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FAI League of Ireland 2008
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FAI Premier Division 2008
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FAI First Division 2008
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UEFA Intertoto Cup 2007
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