Cockhill Celtic come up short against Bray Wanderers in the FAI Cup

Cockhill Celtic’s FAI Cup adventure came to an end at the first hurdle with League of Ireland First Division outfit Bray Wanderers deserving 3-1 winners at a rain soaked Charlie O’Donnell Sports Ground. 

Cockhill Celtic 1 Bray Wanderers 3 

The Ulster Senior League champions competed well in spells but routine mistakes that they might get away with there just weren’t passed up on by their high profile guests with all three goals leaked inside a disastrous ten-minute period. 

However, a fortuitous Fionn McClure effort just before the break did salvage some hope for the hosts. And the moment Cockhill will perhaps look back upon with most regret and wonder ‘what if’ landed almost in their laps on 80 minutes when Garbhan Friel found himself in on goal. 

With the chance to pile real pressure on Bray in the closing ten minutes, Friel just couldn't sort his feet out soon enough and that gilt edged opportunity was lost. 

In an exciting opening Gavin Cullen’s side gave as good as they got. And just seconds in, Luke Rudden and Corey McBride combined very well but just as the latter was lining up to strike, the ball was taken off his toes and turned behind for a corner. 

At the other end, Callum Thompson was threaded through on goal by Ben Feeney but with a late flag going up, play was eventually called back for offside. 

Harry Groome was then upended just outside the area by Lee McLaughlin but despite the freekick being in a very dangerous position, the home defence dealt very well with Conor Crowley’s whipped delivery. 

On 11 minutes, Friel did very well close to the right corner flag to hold off his man and get a delivery in. But unfortunately from a Cockhill perspective at least, that cross was too deep.

Moments later a McClure corner was headed off the outside of the post by the inrushing Friel. With the locals now threatening to get on top, former Finn Harps skipper Dave Webster clattered into Luke Rudden and, in the process, also went into the book.

But with a little sting taken out of Cockhill tails as a result, the breakthrough came for Wanderers on 24 minutes when Chris Lyons fed Feeney on the edge of the area and with Feeney taking a touch to set himself up, he arrowed low and to the bottom left hand corner of the net. 

The visitors almost went two clear on 33 minutes when Feeney was put through by Crowley but with Gallagher charging off his line Feeney was forced wide. And even though the Bray man got his shot away the retreating Oisin McColgan cleared off his own goal line. 

However, moments later the ball was back in the Cockhill net when Chris Lyons arrived in the centre to smash home Thompson’s pinpoint low delivery. 

On 36 minutes things got even better for a dominant Bray as Thompson grabbed a spectacular second when his looping effort from distance went in over the head of the back peddling Gallagher. 

To be fair to the home side, they did steady themselves and four minutes out from the break, an arching McClure corner in on top of Alex Moody was inadvertently turned into his own net by the Wanderers stopper.

Cockhill began the second period on the front foot and that pressure forced the first corner of the new half. McBride’s in-swinger was brilliantly flicked on by Peter Doherty but with Friel stretching at the back post, he just couldn’t connect and the ball went wide.  

Bray though lifted efforts and threatened themselves on 50 minutes when a long ball down the right to Feeny left the visiting attacker in acres of space. To be fair to the Cockhill defence that had stepped up together, Feeny appeared offside. 

However, he was allowed to cut in and with his shot coming off the diving body of Gallagher and spinning wickedly up into the air, it took a last ditch clearance from Lee McLaughlin to divert the danger. 

Cockhill substitute Christopher McLaughlin then got down the left flank but he overcooked his attempted cross. McBride also looked to play in McClure but Bray easily dealt with both those half chances. 

On 65 minutes a direct ball from a deep angle by Lee McColgan was well held up by Friel. With Rudden arriving to his right, Friel invitingly switched play directly into his path but with the Cockhill attacker looking to pull on matters first time, the ball sliced off his left foot and went harmlessly wide. 

Approaching the last ten minutes a huge moment arrived when a hopeful ball forward somehow squeezed through a napping Bray defence and into the path of the advancing Friel. 

But the Cockhill centre forward just took too long to steady himself and by the time he looked to swing a boot, the outrushing Moody managed to deal with what was a golden opportunity to pull the deficit back to just a single goal. 

Nearing full time Doherty had a header put behind for a corner. And while Cockhill were much improved in the second-half, they just couldn’t dent that well protected two-goal lead that Bray carried over from the first period. 

Cockhill Celtic: Ciaran Gallagher; Lee McColgan, Peter Doherty, Oisin McColgan (Jason Breslin, 56), Lee McLaughlin; James Bradley; Corey McBride (Adam McLaughlin, 80), Nathan Logue (Chris McLaughlin, ht); Fionn McClure (Stephen Duffy, 80), Garbhan Friel, Luke Rudden (Caolan McColgan, 67). 

Bray Wanderers: Alex Moody; Len O’Sullivan, Conor Crowley (Darren Craven, 73), Harry Groome (Shaun Quinn, 61), Chris Lyons, Cole Omorehiomwan, Ben Feeney (Yoyo Mahdy 61), Callum Thompson (Ger Shortt,73), Max Murphy, Guillermo Almirall, David Webster. 

Referee: Paul Norton.