Morecambe goal-scoring hero Anthony O'Connor would love Cork City homecoming
Anthony (left) Morcambe's Following The Match Third Fa The O'connor John At Final After Tottenham Round Stadium, Applauds Fans Cup Picture: Emirates London Whistle The Hotspur Walton/pa
Anthony O’Connor, Morecambe’s goalscorer in Sunday’s FA Cup tie at Tottenham, admits he’d like to end his career at Cork City.
The defender played for schoolboy clubs Nufarm and Kilreen Celtic before joining Blackburn Rovers and has had a steady career since in England and Scotland.
He gave the League One club's travelling support plenty to shout about by firing Morecambe into an interval lead at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium before a late surge, led by substitutes Lucas Moura and Harry Kane, saw the Premier League outfit eke out a 3-1 win.
O’Connor, who played for Plymouth Argyle, Burton Albion, Aberdeen, and Bradford City before joining newly-promoted Morecambe in the summer on a two-year deal, admits he yearns to go full circle with his career.
The lure of Turner’s Cross has always been there, especially as he enters the twilight of his career.
Much like Eoin Doyle’s decision to return to St Patrick’s Athletic from Bolton Wanderers for the upcoming season, family commitments will influence the timing.
“Playing for Cork City is something I’ve always thought about,” O’Connor told Cork’s 96FM after Sunday's match.
“I’d love to play in front of my own people. If the opportunity comes up towards the latter stage of my career, or whenever, it might be something that I’d jump at.
“I’ve been in England playing football for the best part of 14 years. I’m no spring chicken, coming up to my 30s, but there’s plenty of years left in me yet. You never know, one day I could come back to my hometown club.
“I’ve always said that once I’d finish my career here, I’d think about coming home.
“I love Cork, it’s where all my family are from but I’ve two young kids that have grown up here in England, so I’d have a decision to make.”
Speaking about leading at Tottenham until the 75th minute, he knew the impact of the Londoners’ bench could be decisive: “Ultimately we're disappointed that we lost, but there are positives.
“We defended well, kept them at bay for large parts of the game, and it's a testament to us that they had to bring on their world-class players. Even so, all the goals were preventable, our own mistakes. It's not like they carved us open.”
O'Connor said he would have happily sacrificed his goal if it had meant Morecambe winning. “To score was brilliant for me, but I'm disappointed we lost the game. If you said I wouldn't score but we'd win, I'd chop your hand off for that. We showed we're a good group of lads who play for each other and let's hope we can take that into our league form – the league is our bread and butter.”