DCU made it two from two in their CUFL campaign by easily disposing of a brave Coláiste Íde side this afternoon. In reality, the score line flattered the visitors, and had DCU been more ruthless in front of goal it may have mirrored last Friday’s at the Aviva.
DCU will take the result and move on, but they are yet to be completely free of the early season jitters and on too many occasions they relinquished possession cheaply. Frugality in this area would be advised.
However, their play off the ball was first class; Coláiste Íde were afforded little time or space, and subsequently were never able to properly settle and play with any kind of pattern.
Rory Dunleavy and Stephen Traynor did not have to fight half as hard for control as they did against UCD, and the Coláiste Íde midfield spent most of the afternoon chasing shadows. The outstanding Daniel Mahon was a genuine threat on the right wing from the start and could have had a hat trick in the opening half.
There was little surprise when Michael Isichei made it three goals in two games, when he broke the deadlock eleven minutes in. After latching onto a huge Ben Dale kick-out and taking advantage of some lax defending, he fired a low, right foot effort past Brian Spillane.
Having had such a monopoly of possession and allowed to operate in vast amounts of space, DCU should have been out the gap by the break, but too many chances went a begging.
Coláiste Íde came out swinging after the interval and made DCU work much harder on the ball, this rush of brio was short lived however, when Philip O’Driscoll finished off a wonderful team effort eight minutes in.
Ben Dale returned a speculative clearance to Stephen Traynor; his through ball was laid off by David Lodola into the path of O’Driscoll, who had come in from the left wing, before dispatching a cool finish into the bottom corner.
Within minutes Coláiste Íde were somehow back in the game. The referee rather generously awarded them a free-kick just outside the box, which Paul Connolly put on the head of Donal Coughlan, who headed home from six yards.
If not for a brilliant save from Ben Dale from a looping Hardy Sharpe effort it would have been all square with fifteen minutes to go. This would have been unjust as DCU were playing all the football.
After a tough day at the office David Lodola ensured the victory, when Darren Mahon’s cross found him eight yards from goal and he duly obliged with a clinical finish.
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