- Cork City are the 79/100 favourites ahead of Longford Town, who are 3/1 and the draw is 14/5.
- Longford Town have lost two of their last three home games in the First Division 2026.
- Cork City have won two, drawn two and lost one of their last five.
An in-form Cork City should see off Longford Town
Cork City FC have 71 points from 32 First Division 2026 games to put them top of the table, while Longford Town are 5th on 44 points from 32. The reverse fixture, played two months ago, saw Longford Town pull off a surprise 4-3 victory as visitors, but Cork City will hope to make up for that defeat by securing all three points on Saturday. Cork City have a recent head-to-head advantage over Longford Town (W4, L1 from the last five), but anything could be on the cards. Cork City are in mixed form with two wins, two draws and one defeat from their last five. They bounced back from a 3-2 defeat to Cobh Ramblers with a 5-1 victory over UCD last time out, while Longford Town are in identical form after a defeat and a win in their most recent two. Gary Cronin's side have been in mixed home form of late, with one win and two defeats from their last three, so we could see another upset on Saturday. Cork City play in a three-at-the-back system with wing-backs, pressing high and trying to flood the wide areas. This can cause problems for teams that like to play through the thirds and Longford are a team that do exactly that. Longford Town much prefer a compact back five and a deep block, preferring to absorb pressure and look for a quick transition when they win the ball back.
Cork City to take the points
Cork are a much better side than their opponents and it's no surprise that they're top of the league. They play with authority and Gerard Nash's men are a real threat going forward. The visitors look the likelier winners on the day, but as Longford Town caused an upset in the reverse, this could be a tricky contest.
Aaron Doran is a bright spark for Longford Town and has three of Longford Town's seven goals in the last five. Cork City's Sean Maguire is the main danger man and has seven of their 12 goals in the same five-game period.
With Cork City's away form in the First Division 2026 reading 8 wins, 5 draws and just two defeats from 15, 1.60 goals per-game on average scored and 0.80 conceded, we can see the away side coming out on top.
Over 2.5 goals is coming in at 53/100 and both teams to score at 12/25, so we're expecting another lively encounter between these two sides.
