Cork City captain Johnny Dunleavy made a return from injury for a winning homecoming to Ballybofey last night.
Dunleavy is just back after a nine-month injury lay-off and the former Wolves player was playing at his ‘home’ venue for the first time last night.
He grew up a stone’s throw away at Drumboe, but at 25 he finally ran down the stone steps at Finn Park for the first time.
“It was lovely to come back,” he said.
“It was a frustrating period – but maybe it was written in the stars to come back here!
“The conditions weren’t what anyone wanted and the pitch was basically unplayable, the inspections showed that, but the job was to come up and get three points – and we did that.
“Tonight showed a lot of character and solidity in the squad. With ten men, we kept Harps to one chance in the last 15 minutes.”
Garry Buckley was sent off on 75 minutes, but Cork closed the shutters in the final quarter-of-an-hour.
Meanwhile, Dunleavy – who had a Harps scarf hanging in his room while he was a Wolves player – says his hometown side are capable of surviving in the top flight this season.
He said: “They have a lot of quality in that team. If they turn this place into a fortress they’ll have a right chance.”
