Everyone wants to beat us, Cobh are no different, insists Coleman

Here we are again. The latest instalment of the Cork City-Cobh Ramblers rivalry. 

City's brief stint back in the Premier Division kept them apart in terms of league action in 2023. Their relegation play-off loss at the hands of Waterford has reunited them for the 2024 edition of the First Division. 

The clubs have quite a history of trading players back and forth. Several ex-City academy players will find themselves lining out in claret and blue at Turner's Cross come Friday evening. 

Jack Doherty and Charlie Lyons - two of the Rebel Army's top performers thus far in this campaign - swapped those colours for City's green, white, and red trim during the winter.

One man who knows both clubs and the fixture well is Cian Coleman, what does it mean to the City captain? 

"It means a lot," Coleman told the Irish Examiner on Wednesday. "It's not just any game. It's a derby, so it means more. A lot of people in this city know what it means to them to win the game.

"I think every team that comes to Turner's Cross raises their game, and especially this season. Every team will want to beat us, especially them. 

"They'd like to turn us over, but look, that's what we're at this club for. Everyone wants to beat us and we're prepared for that, but if we're on our game, we're more than capable of winning."

While unbeaten in their eight games so far this season, and looking to bolster their home record with a fifth successive home win, Tim Clancy's table-toppers haven't quite been clinical enough when they've had ample chances to kill teams off. 

It's something Coleman would enjoy rectifying when Ramblers come to town. 

The 27-year-old centre-half said: It's massive, massive. I feel like we're due a game where we need to score more than