'At some stage, it can't be okay anymore' - Derry manager Tiernan Lynch

Tiernan Lynch has hinted that Derry City’s tolerance for controversial calls from match officials is wearing thin after another costly penalty call against Galway United at the weekend.

Referee Declan Toland awarded Galway a penalty just 10 minutes into Friday’s game, for an alleged foul by City defender Kevin Holt during a corner kick set-play from the visitors. While Holt then scored an equaliser less than 10 minutes later, the game ended 1-1 and Lynch was left to reflect on another big call which went against his team this season.

“It’s the second game in a row where we’ve had a penalty given against us,” he said. It’s a dubious penalty; those things happen in almost every set-piece, every long throw and every corner kick. I’m very conscious that I don’t sound like a broken record here, and that we keep moaning and bitching and looking for excuses. We’re not looking for excuses, but we have to keep pointing it out, that as a club it can’t keep happening and we can’t just be okay with it.

“At some stage it can’t be okay anymore. In the last two games, we’re going in 1-0 down, and even for the players, having to pick themselves up having worked so hard all week, and then deal with decisions like that, and that’s very frustrating.

Derry City have already conceded five penalties this season, and, barring the entirety of the 2019 season when City conceded six overall, it is the most conceded in a single season in over a decade. Controversial penalties, as much as red cards, have actively affected the Candystripes this year, with the team managing just one point from the four games in which they have conceded penalty kicks.

“There have probably been 20 or 30 situations in the first 18 rounds of games where those types if tackles have happened, and penalties haven’t been given,” Lynch said. “If we can get an explanation of why they have been given against us and they’re not given in other games, I would be happy to take that and put my hands up and apologise, but it was a really soft penalty, as was the one the game before.

“I’m not egotistical enough that I won’t apologise, but from where I was standing and the footage I’ve seen back, it was a soft penalty.”

City have shown some resolve om coming from behind to save six points this season, but Lynch believes his players are being put onto the back foot unnecessarily in games.

“What you have to take into consideration are the players and how it affects them mentally,” he explained. “If it’s a stonewall penalty, it’s a stonewall penalty and you have to put your hands up. The frustration of the players is the fact that they don’t see them as penalties, and those situations happen in games week in and week out and they’re not given. Especially after what happened last week, for it to happen again, they have to take a lot of credit to pick themselves up as well as they did and get an equaliser eight minutes later and then dominate. What we’ll not do it shy away from the things that we didn’t do well in the second half and those are things we’ll have to get better at, but it is frustrating.”

Lynch did acknowledge that his players had to take responsibility for a number of big chances in the first half, which, if scored, could have meant a comfortable victory for his team.

“That’s probably been our Achilles Heel this year that when we’ve had chances to put teams to bed, we haven’t and we haven’t kicked on from it,” he continued. “I can’t fault the players because they’re working really, really hard. The big thing also, is that it just seems to be one kick in the teeth after another for them and they have to pick themselves up again and go again. I feel for them a little bit at times.”

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Meanwhile, Lynch could not clarify the future of striker Pat Hoban who was again an unused substitute on Friday night. The striker has had very few opportunities in recent weeks, and while a move to be reunited with former manager Ruaidhri Higgins at Coleraine has now been ruled out, he seems almost certain to leave with Galway United again linked. But Lynch would not add to the speculation when asked.

“It’s a situation where Pat has missed a large part of the season and the match fitness,” he said. “We did toy with the idea of going with two up front, but we ended up not doing it. I can’t guarantee anyone is going to be here (in the second half of the season), so who knows?’