Athlone Town continued their impressive run of form with their second win of the season coming against Cork City at Turners Cross.

A 78th minute strike from James Doona secured victory for the Midlanders who remain unbeaten so far in 2021.

The hosts made two changes to their starting line-up from their defeat to Cabinteely. Jack Walsh and Jonas Hakkinen were brought in to replace Jack Baxter and Cian Murphy. The visitors went with the same line-up that came out 3-1 winners against Galway United the previous week.

The first half was very evenly matched with both sides having good spells of possession and creating chances. Athlone’s play down the wing seemed to cause some trouble for Cork but Town struggled to create clear cut chances. The Rebels arguably had the better of the chances and should have gone into halftime with a lead.

Despite creating opportunities, both teams lacked conviction in front of goal with all of the shots going straight at the keepers or off target.

James Doona was the danger man for Athlone as they looked to expose Cork down the left. The winger put in a couple of dangerous crosses, but his teammates failed to capitalise.

Cork’s wingers, Dylan McGlade and Cian Bargary also caused problems for the Athlone defence with some clever spells of play. Jack Walsh’s presence was also a threat as he got into some dangerous positions.

Unfortunately, a lack of conviction in front of goal seemed to be the story of the first half and the sides went in level at the break.

Cork took control after the restart and had large amounts of possession. They looked certain to take the lead through Cian Bargary, after a counterattack put the winger through. However, his touch was heavy and that closed the angle for his shot which was comfortably saved by Micheal Schlingermann.

Athlone took the lead in the 78th minute through James Doona. The former St. Pat’s man gave his side the lead against the run of play.

For the remaining 12 minutes, Cork dominated proceedings, but they could not break down the stubborn Athlone defence. A mix of good defending from the visitors and a lack of cutting edge from the home team, mean that Cork have now lost their last two games by a goal to nil.

Colin Healy will be disappointed with his side after having the majority of possession, but Athlone Town can’t be faulted after a solid win and a wonderful start to the 2021 season.