All-Ireland SFC Qualifiers Round One: Roscommon 0-14 Cork 1-10 A goal with just a minute of normal time remaining failed to rescue 13-man Cork in their All-Ireland football qualifier with Roscommon at Hyde Park on Saturday.
The home side enjoyed a glorious 13-minute spell before the break during which they recorded six unanswered points to lead 0-10 to 0-5 at half-time but Cork really blew a game they should have won with a sensational double sending-off after Colin Corkery and Brendan Ger O'Sullivan received red cards late in the second half.
Corkery, who had a somewhat frustrating game in front of the posts, was sent off after 28 minutes of the second half for an off-the-ball incident with Roscommon wing back Morgan Beirne, and within a minute O'Sullivan received his marching orders for striking Gary Cox.
Ironically for Cork, both players were dismissed at a time when they had reduced Roscommon's lead to three points and were completely on top of a very panic-stricken home side.
Despite Frankie Dolan restoring Roscommon's lead to four points with a converted free, 13-man Cork continued to dominate in the closing stages and when wing half back Owen Sexton scored a goal with a minute of normal time remaining, just a point separated the sides.
Roscommon grabbed a crucial further point when Dolan scored from play in added time with Cork substitute James O'Shea converting a free in the fifth minute of added time.
Dolan opened the scoring from a Roscommon free after a minute but for much of the first half Cork looked the better side and points from Colin Crowley, O'Sullivan and a Corkery free put them 0-3 to 0-1 in front after 12 minutes.
Roscommon responded well with two points from Dolan levelling the scores before Cox edged the home side in front for the first time. Two points from Michéal Ó Croinín put Cork ahead again after 21 minutes but Roscommon produced their purple patch in which unanswered points from Karl Mannion, Cox, Seamus O'Neill, Dolan from a free, Jonathan Dunning and Gerry Lohan gave them a 0-10 to 0-5 interval lead.
Roscommon's colourful goalkeeper and captain Shane Curran made a brilliant save from Alan Cronin in the first half and was again in action in the second half when he saved from point blank range after Ó Croinín was put through on goal by Corkery. Added to some very intelligent use of kick-outs Curran did enough to merit the man-of-the-match accolade.
Roscommon manager Tom Carr will be delighted with the result but he must be concerned at the way his side fell away in the second half during which they conceded midfield.
They lost centre half back Francie Grehan through injury for the second half and lacked an inspirational figure to bring them through a very patchy period which probably would have proved fatal but for the two Cork sending offs.
For Cork manager Larry Tompkins this may well have been his last game in charge and sadly he had to endure the indignity of a sideline attack from one of his own supporters midway through the second half. The young man had to be wrestled to the ground by Cork selectors before being escorted from the pitch by gardaí.
ROSCOMMON: S Curran; J Nolan, D Casey, J Whyte; M Beirne, F Grehan, P Noone; S O'Neill (0-1), S Lohan (0-1); G Cox (0-2), G Lohan (0-2), D Connellan; J Dunning (0-1), K Mannion (0-1), F Dolan (0-6, four frees). Subs: E Towey for Beirne, Beirne for F Grehan, E Ryan for Nolan, J Tiernan for Connellan.
CORK: K O'Dwyer; S O'Brien, N Geary, A Lynch; S Levis, G Canty, E Sexton (1-0); N Murphy, M McCarthy; BJ O'Sullivan (0-1), M Cronin, A Cronin; C Crowley (0-1), C Corkery (0-4, three frees), M O'Croinin (0-2). Subs: J O'Shea (0-1) for C Crowley, J O'Donoghue for A Cronin, B Collins for O'Cronin, D Kavanagh (0-1) for McCarthy, J Miskella for Murphy.
Referee: M Monahan (Kildare).
