Photo Credit: Doug Minihane
For many City fans, the name Mark O’Sullivan will always bring a smile to their face. ‘Marky’ as he became known, followed Johnny C and John Cotter, as well as new First Team Coach, Liam Kearney to Turner's Cross from Avondale, for the 2014 season, and did he make an impact!
I personally fell in love with Mark on the 4th of April that year, the reason why I remember the date so well was because it was my 18th birthday that day, I remember bunking off from school early (after the first class, but stay in school kids!), heading down to Mahon for a ‘cheeky Nandos’, before heading down to The ‘Cross, as Rovers were the visitors.
With two game wonder Anthony Elding deciding he had had enough with Leeside, Danny Morrissey picking up an injury (which would become a regular occurrence) and Michael Rafter out for the season, myself and my mates were left wondering who would lead the line upfront, not knowing a whole pile about the than 32 year old, an eyebrow was certainly raised.
If we knew nothing about him before the game, we knew everything about him after! As he scored the third in a 3-0 dismantling of “Ireland’s Number 1”! Second City? Second to None, and Mark epitomized that.
As that season went on and an unlikely title charge emerged, it was an unlikely source leading the line. While John O’Flynn did re-sign after years in England, but it was O’Sullivan who was the real goal threat. 11 goals in his first season of League of Ireland football wasn’t a bad return, second top scorer behind a certain Tralee native, many, myself included, wished the ex brick layer were 10 years younger!
2015 proved to be even better for him on the pitch (well, we’ll get to that), 16 goals in all competitions making him the clubs top scorer, including a goal in Iceland against KR while it turned out to be fruitless, it’s always nice to score in European competition, good one for that CV. Unfortunately though, it was what happened on the field that everyone will remember that KR game for.
Despite that though, he scored Cork City’s first goal away to Dundalk since 2013, when we drew 1-1, he scored an absolute worldie when City knocked Pat’s out of the cup after the reigning cup champions lost 4-0. It was also this season where the patented Mark O’Sullivan was first brought upon the world. Liam Miller would flick the ball to an onrushing O’Sullivan, bang, bottom corner, no one could save it, no one knew how to deal with it, thinking about the first time I saw it still gives me shivers to this day.
2016 rolled around and we all kind of knew that Mark didn’t have much longer in him, especially with the acquisition of Sean Maguire. We all assumed that the goal against Dundalk in Oriel would be his last for the club, but it transpired to be his second last, he scored against Wexford Youths in Turner's Cross in a 5-0 win. A goal to give us hope that we could nick a draw in Oriel wouldn’t have been a beautiful way for him to bow out, but a scrappy goal against Youths really sums up Mark O’Sullivan for me, it may be nothing special, but god damn it, when it was needed (or in this case, not so much), he was always there.
I met Mark in Soho the night after the cup final and he told me it was 10 years since he won the Intermediate Cup under Caulfield at Avondale. It really was a crying shame, that while he did have success at Munster Senior League level, that he didn’t have the same success at League of Ireland (or even in England). Thanks for everything Mark, and best of luck at Waterford!