Derry City interim boss Mark Connolly blasted the club’s performance after a 5-3 defeat to Bohemians on Friday night at Dalymount Park. He accused the side of a ‘sheer madness’ in the second half, citing three set‑piece goals and a red card that turned the game.
Set‑piece disaster
Connolly said the first 45 minutes were “brilliant” and that Derry were “by far the better team” before the break, with Michael Duffy’s first‑half strike giving them a 1‑0 lead. However, ten minutes after the whistle, the team “conceded three goals, all from set‑pieces in the space of six minutes.” He described the period as “10 minutes of absolute madness” and blamed the lack of desire to keep the ball out of the net for the collapse.
Red card fallout
During the same spell, former Bohemians player James Clarke was shown a straight red card for a poor challenge on Connor Parsons. Connolly said the sending‑off left Derry “3‑1 down with ten men” and that the team “just weren’t good enough to climb that mountain.” He added that the boys kept trying and plugged on, but the ten‑minute period “ruined the game for us.”
Looking ahead
Connolly also addressed the wider context of Derry City’s season. He noted that the club had recently beaten Sligo and UCD, and that “people were waiting for a loss” and ready to jump on it. He said the club is “having a review of everything top to bottom” after the departure of Tiernan, and that discussions are happening daily to decide the club’s future. “We’re trying to get stuff sorted behind the scenes,” he said, “and we’ll get it right.”
The 5‑3 scoreline was the highest‑scoring match at Dalymount Park in recent memory, with Bohemians’ attack proving too strong for Derry’s defence. Connolly’s comments highlight the frustration of a team that felt it had executed its game plan in the first half but was undone by defensive lapses and disciplinary issues in the second.
