Cork City begin their defence of the Setanta Sports Cup on Saturday, as they take on Cliftonville at Turner’s Cross.

City recorded a 1-0 over Drogheda United last week, a result which leaves the Rebel Army sitting in third place in the League of Ireland Premier Division and also means Paul Doolin’s side have suffered only one defeat in their last six games.
Rebel Army manager Paul Doolin says that he wants his team to get off to a winning start in the Setanta Sports Cup.

“We have suffered only one defeat in our last six games, and I am quite pleased with our recent form," he said. "I think with the players we have lost in recent times, Cliftonville will probably come down with the belief that they can pick up a good result, but we are on a decent run ourselves. The fact that we are the holders makes the return of the competition even more appealing and we are really looking forward to getting our campaign underway, so I would hope that we can get the competition off to a decent start and claim the three points.”

Timmy Kiely has recovered from the flu which caused him to miss the win over Drogheda, meaning that Doolin has no injury or suspension concerns ahead of the game. City recorded two wins over Cliftonville in last year’s competition, but Doolin believes that they will be tough opponents: “Cliftonville, of course, were in Cork City’s group last year, as were Drogheda United, so both myself and the players would have a good knowledge of them from that group. I don’t think Cliftonville had the best of season last season in terms of their league performance, but they have been a good side over the past few years and have some good players.”