Sending off kills Bohs - September 12, 2000 Bohemians 1 Kaiserslautern 3 The sending off of Trevor Molloy just before the half-time break in last night's UEFA Cup first-round tie against Kaiserslautern had such a knock-on effect that the Dublin outfit are all but out of the competition after losing 3-1. The pity is that they were competing well all through the first half and at times looked the more likely team to score - but the controversial dismissal of Molloy changed all that and they were left with an up-hill battle to hold out the Germans. Molloy plans on appealing his red card - but even if he wins the case it will be too late for Bohemians. With three minutes of the first half left, Molloy was involved with a scuffle with defender Harry Koch. Molloy raised his hand to hit the defender but pulled back. The referee didn't see it that way and he was close to the action. He brandished the red card without a moment of thought and with it ended all hopes that Bohs had of scoring a famous result. Roddy Collins' side played some lovely football in the first half, creating more chances than their illustrious opponents and if Kevin Hunt was able to cross the ball they could have easily taken the lead. Hunt is a very good player in most respects of the game. He will battle all day and his passing on the ground is as good as any other player in the team. Even when the ball is in the air he has the ability to out-jump taller players but when it comes to crossing the ball he is the worst in the world. Within seconds of the kick-off last night, Bohs could have taken the lead. After some neat build-up play, the ball fell to Molloy on the edge of the box but with a clear sighting of goal he blazed his shot wide. Kaiserslautern went up the other end straight away and threatened Wayne Russell's goal and the tempo was set for the night. Collins had to try to work the oracle at half time with only ten men to send back on the pitch and they were doing well until the 72nd minute when Dave Hill fell asleep on the edge of his own box with the ball at his feet. In stepped a Kaiserslautern player to steal it away and cross across the box where Bohs were exposed. Substitute Marco Reich ran onto the ball and smashed it past Russell. It was harsh on the goalkeeper because he was after making an outstanding double save from Jorgen Pettersson and Youri Djorkaeff just seconds before. The goal freed up the German play and they ripped apart the Bohemians defence twice more to score. Marian Hristov made it 2-0 in the 76th minute from straight in front of goal and three minutes later Igli Tare latched onto a Russell parry from a Djorkaeff shot to slot home. Bohs did get some consolation in the 94th minute when they were awarded a dubious penalty after referee Charles Agius adjudged that Egyptian defender Hany Ramzy had brought down Glenn Crow e. The former Wolves striker stepped up and coolly slotted the ball home. Manager Roddy Collins was understandably upset after the game, especially about the sending off. He said: "To say that the dismissal changed the game is a huge understatement. It's a disastrous result and just makes me feel so sad that the lads played so well for so long before our house caved in."
Bohemians: Wayne Russell, Tony O'Connor, Simon Webb, Kevin Hunt, Shaun Maher, Dave Hill, Liam O'Brien, Dave Morrison, Stephen Caffrey, Trevor Molloy, Glenn Crowe. |