Cork City manager John Caulfield hailed his side’s "electric" first-half display that paved the way for another FAI Cup final appearance, while his Bohs counterpart Keith Long was left to rue their defensive showing on the night.
The Leesiders secured their place in a fourth consecutive Irish Daily Mail FAI Cup final as they defeated Bohemians 2-1 in the semi-final replay at Turner’s Cross on Monday evening.
First-half goals from Graham Cummins and Karl Sheppard was enough to send the holders through following their first victory in five games at the expense of Bohs, who responded in vein with an incredible second-half strike from Ian Morris.
Caulfield was delighted with the performance of his team after stuttering domestic form that saw Dundalk reclaim the league title off their closest rivals.
"We are going back to the Aviva and could become the first Cork team to win three-in-a-row," he told RTÉ Sport.
"Our first-half performance was electric. We were first to every ball"
"We have gone through a difficult month, there was a lot of criticism of the team. I see them every day and their work rate.
"Our first-half performance was electric. We were first to every ball. We had Bohs on the back foot and totally dominated the game [in the opening 45 minutes]."
His opposite number Keith Long admitted that the first half paved the way for their exit at the penultimate stage, stating afterwards his side "looked nervy for some reason".
He told RTÉ Sport that their start at Turner’s Cross simply wasn’t good enough against a City attack that sprung few surprises.
"We didn’t deal with the threats Cork in the first half and we know all about them," he said.
"It’s quite direct and functional"
"It’s very, very basic and quite agricultural from back to front. They pick up second balls and have runners off them. We didn’t defend the ball in the air and the runners off it. It’s quite direct and functional. We weren’t surprised by it. We expected it, but just couldn’t deal with it."
Caulfield paid tribute to the visitors’ approach after the break which led to Cork defending for large periods, but insisted that "they never opened us up".
He also acknowledged the fighting spirit of his players and indeed the fans after the recent rocky patch.
"We qualified for Europe with seven games to go.
"We haven’t become a bad team in a few weeks, but the confidence was down. They showed all the good aspects of a Cork City team."
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