League of Ireland: St Patrick’s Athletic 4 (Redmond 7; Melia 18, 58; Leavy 62) Cork City 0
Mason Melia understands the importance of timing in the short lifespan of a centre forward. In the 18th minute, on a humdrum Monday night at Richmond Park, he celebrated his 18th birthday with a thumping header.
Melia’s 13th and 14th goals of the season brought a subdued Inchicore crowd of 2,612 to their feet as they celebrated the Tottenham Hotspur-bound striker’s farewell to childhood.
Melia’s first goal gave St Patrick’s Athletic a 2-0 lead over a Cork City side that, on this evidence, will struggle in the first division next year. Relegation will be all but confirmed by defeat to Galway United this Friday.
Gerard Nash’s squad cannot be as poor as their collective showing here. Perhaps it was a ruse as St Pat’s must journey to Turners’ Cross for the FAI Cup semi-final on Friday week.
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That would partially explain how Freddie Anderson allowed Melia to pickpocket him in the seventh minute, only for his fellow teenager’s shot to be blocked by Rory Feely. It is harder to explain why Darragh Crowley failed to contest Simon Power’s resulting corner that Joe Redmond planted past Conor Brann.
It would have been 2-0 before Melia’s first goal only Seanie Maguire cleared Tom Grivosti’s free header off the line from another Power corner.
Melia is the focal point at St Pat’s since the club accepted a €1.9 million fee from Spur, where he travels to in December, but Power has been a revelation off the wing for Stephen Kenny’s team.
After taking Bernard Peixoto Couto on a leisurely stroll down the right, without the Portuguese defender getting near him, Melia nodded home the cut back cross. Again, Crowley failed to launch.
It’s a fickle game. Not a week ago, Crowley was the hero on Leeside when his late strike denied Shamrock Rovers all three points.
Melia’s second for St Pat’s third goal of the night came before the hour mark, when he punched the ball under Brann after more jittery defending by the visitors. Really, he should have completed the hat-trick as he sprayed two shots over the crossbar before making way for Conor Carty.
By then, Kian Leavy had punished more sloppy play in the Rebels box to make it 4-0.
Just like last season’s storming run-in, St Pat’s are unbeaten in seven matches since Besiktas knocked them out of Europe. Taking the Turkish club out of the equation, they have not lost since the Derry City game on June 23rd.
As it currently stands, with five games remaining, they either need to win the cup or hope that Rovers do the double to secure European football next summer.
Rovers 2-1 win in Waterford last night means that Stephen Bradley’s men can seal a fifth title in six seasons if Derry lose away to Drogheda and the Hoops beat Bohemians in Tallaght on Friday.
Sligo Rovers secured the result of the night as Cian Kavanagh’s goal at Eamonn Deacy Park dropped Galway into the relegation play-off spot.
ST PATRICK’S ATHLETIC: Anang; Sjoberg, Redmond, Grivosti, McClelland (Kazeem 67); Lennon (Robinson 76), Baggley; Power (Mulraney 67), Leavy, Garrick (Kavanagh 76); Melia (Carty 63).
CORK CITY: Brann; Crowley, Anderson (Bolger ht), Feely, Couto; Kamara (Lyons ht), Murray; Nolan (Fitzpatrick ht), McLaughlin, Nelson (Murray 62); Maguire (Lutz 66).
Referee: Neil Doyle.
