Month: October 2021

We welcome Loughgall to Dixon Park tomorrow afternoon in our next Lough 41 Championship fixture.

Match Info

When: Saturday 30^th October – Kick-Off 3:00pm

Where: Dixon Park

What: Lough 41 Championship

Entry: Pay at the gate – £8 (Adult) / £5 (Concession)

Match Sponsor: Terry Coulter Cars

Ball Sponsor: Anonymous

The Opponents

Loughgall go into tomorrow’s game off the back of last week’s 1-0 victory over league leaders, Ards. Scoreless at the break, the only goal of the game came on the hour mark when Andrew Hoey ran onto a flick into the area to take the ball past Conall McGrandles and fire beyond Brian Neeson inside the near post. Loughgall could have doubled their advantage moments later but Pablo Andrade turned his effort against the upright. Ards ended the game with ten men following Jaimie McGovern’s dismissal for a challenge on Dale Malone. Loughgall currently sit 5^th in the Lough 41 Championship table, 5 points behind Ballyclare Comrades.

The Comrades

Paul Harbinson’s men had to be content with a point from a goalless draw against Institute at Dixon Park last Saturday. The visitors had a great chance to move in front just before the hour. Curtis Woods was adjudged to have upended Dunne inside the box but, from the penalty that followed, Liam Walsh could only look on as his effort was turned away by the diving Richard Purcell. The Comrades were reduced to ten men on 74 minutes when Howard Beverland was dismissed for a challenge on Liam Walsh but ‘Stute failed to take advantage and, indeed, have John Connolly to thank with a couple of saves late in the game to deny Liam McKenna and Ciarán Dobbin. Following the game, Harbinson said “I think we have to look at that as points dropped. That’s a game at home where we are expecting to go in and perform to the level that we did last week and if we do that, maybe we get more out of the game and we certainly expect to work harder than we did, so it’s an overwhelming disappointment”. Harbinson will be looking for his squad to return to the form that saw them put 4 past Annagh United the week previous.

Last Time Out

Loughgall took home all 3 points the last time these two sides met back in August with a 2-0 win at Dixon Park. The first quarter of the game was evenly balanced with chances at a premium. However, Comrades had an excellent opportunity to take the lead on 21 minutes when Andrew Mooney ran onto a long ball played from deep by Ciarán Dobbin and outpaced a covering defender to run in on goal, but he couldn’t beat the ‘keeper with his effort from inside the box. Loughgall hit the front in the 28th minute. A ball over the top caught out the Comrades defence and it was then played in from the wing to Hoey who made space and struck an excellent finish just inside the post from the edge of the box. The home side continue to frustrate their supporters and failed to test the Loughgall ‘keeper in the latter stages of the match. Their disappointing day was completed a minute into injury time when the visitors sealed the victory with a second goal. They all too easily won the ball in the centre of the field from a Comrades clearance, and it was then played through to Forde who raced clear and finished confidently from fourteen yards.

We welcome Institute to Dixon Park tomorrow afternoon in our next Lough 41 Championship fixture.

Match Info

When: Saturday 23^rd October – Kick-Off 3:00pm

Where: Dixon Park

What: Lough 41 Championship

Entry: Pay at the gate – £8 (Adult) / £5 (Concession)

Match & Ball Sponsor: Extra Care

The Opponents

Institute come into tomorrow’s game following a 2-1 defeat at home to Newry City last Saturday. Newry came from a goal down to claim all three points at the Brandywell. ‘Stute moved in front after just eight minutes when the on-form Brendan McLaughlin beat City keeper Steven Maguire with a sublime chip. That was how it stayed until 60 seconds from the break when Stephen Lawless levelled for the visitors from close range. And Newry’s winner came a couple of minutes before the hour mark courtesy of James Teelan’s finish into the roof of the net following a sustained period of pressure. Institute currently occupy 10^th spot in the league table on 12 points, just 6 points adrift from the top 6, with a game in hand.

The Comrades

Paul Harbinson’s men made it three wins from three as they put 4 past Annagh United last Saturday, keeping them in contention at the top of the table. The Comrades started the game on the front-foot and soon got their reward. In the 6th minute their excellent pressing paid off when Liam McKenna robbed an opponent inside the Annagh half and fed the ball forward to Andrew Mooney. The striker could have taken on a shot but had the awareness to see Liam Hassin arriving in a better position on the left side of the box and fed him a perfectly weighted ball which Hassin fired into the roof of the net from 12 yards for his first goal for the club. The second goal for the away team came in the 19th minute. A corner played low into the box saw it ricochet about the box and then fall to Andrew Mooney who drilled it in from 7 yards. The two-goal lead for Comrades didn’t last long and five minutes later the hosts were right back in the game. A dangerous long-throw into the box from Taylor, a feature throughout the game, saw Ashton McDermott head into his own net, giving ‘keeper Richard Purcell no chance. The second half saw the Comrades step things up again and on 64 minutes, a Gary Donnelly free kick forced Hughes to make a save and the ball rebounded out to Ian Fletcher who the struck a fine controlled effort wide of the keeper and inside the far post from 10 yards. The destination of the points was put beyond doubt in the 86th minute. With Annagh pushing men forward, Gary Donnelly set Liam Hassin clear to run free from the halfway line and, when he reached the box, he squared unselfishly to Ciaran Heggarty who had arrived in support and was able to finish confidently from 10 yards. That keeps the Comrades in 3^rd position in the Lough 41 Championship table with both Ards and Newry City, above, winning their respective matches.

Last Time Out

The last time these two sides met was at the beginning of the season, when a dominant first half display secured the Comrades’ three points from their trip to the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium. Paul Harbinson’s men were quick off the blocks and soon had the lead. In the 5th minute, with his third corner in quick succession, Liam McKenna whipped in a beauty which went in at the near post despite a defender’s effort to keep it out. In the 22nd minute the visitors doubled their lead. Curtis Woods played an excellent ball into the box from the by-line, finding Adam Gray who took a touch and produced a composed finish from 10 yards. Comrades continued to look threatening and on 36 minutes they went three up. Liam Hassin burst into the box and was brought down for a penalty. Joe Tully stepped up to take the spot kick, but ‘keeper McCann was able to save it. However, the ball fell back kindly into the path of Tully who this time made no mistake. The second half was a rather different affair, and on 83 minutes Institute got what proved only to be a consolation goal when Pomeroy converted from the spot after Chris Ramsey had fouled an opponent in the

We travel to the BMG Arena tomorrow afternoon to take on Annagh United in our next Lough 41 Championship fixture.

Match Info

When: Saturday 16^th October – Kick-Off 3:00pm

Where: BMG Arena

What: Lough 41 Championship

Entry: Pay at the gate – £8 (Adult) / £5 (Concession)

The Opponents

Annagh currently sit in 4^th position in the Lough 41 Championship, just 3 points behind the Comrades. They go into tomorrow’s game following Tuesday night’s 2-1 AET victory over Armagh City to progress into the semi final of the Mid Ulster Cup. Last Saturday, they were in league action at The Dub where they took on hosts, Queen’s University. The visitors moved into the lead after just seven minutes when Stephen Murray chipped keeper Daniel Devine from an acute angle after latching onto a Ruairi McDonald flick. And Ciaran McGurgan’s side doubled their advantage five minutes before the break courtesy of Ryan Harpur’s tap in after the ball fell loose when Lee Upton’s initial header came back off an upright. The two first half goals were enough for Annagh as the game finished 2-0.

The Comrades

The Comrades travel to the BMG Arena following last Friday night’s 1-0 victory over Dundela at Dixon Park. Liam McKenna popped up with yet another important goal as the visitors made a mess from a throw-in deep in their own territory and an attempted clearance fell to Andrew Mooney near the by-line. He then played the ball across to McKenna who was free to knock it into the net from close range. In the end, the one goal was enough to give Comrades the victory in a tight match where their defensive strength on the night held them in good stead. Speaking on his side’s resolute defending on the night, Paul Harbinson said “How often have we spoken about how important it is to be solid at the back and have leaders on the pitch? With Howard Beverland and Chris Ramsey, you’ve two leaders who just want it. I mean there was times they were fighting each other for the ball, to win headers and to win tackles. Curtis Woods and Ian Fletcher came in and did their jobs and Ashton McDermott in front was really solid”. Speaking on tomorrow’s trip away to Annagh, Harbinson expects a “really, really tough battle on the tighter 3G pitch, so we’ll have to be focused”. The Comrades manager will be looking to avoid a repeat of August’s tie against Annagh which saw the Comrades 4-0 down at the break and down to 10 men. He spoke about the need to “remind the players of what we did, the mistakes we made and how easy we made it for Annagh, with no disrespect to Annagh, they’re doing extremely well”. With the first full set of Championship games now completed, the Comrades occupy third spot in the table, just 1 point behind Newry in second and 3 points behind Ards who are the current league leaders.

Last Time Out

The last time these two sides met, a disastrous first-half Comrades performance helped Annagh storm to a comprehensive 5-1 home victory. After an even opening few minutes, the pattern for the rest of the half was set in the 7th minute when Jack Ferguson attempted to clear a high ball played into the box but lost out to Duffin who got to the bouncing ball first and then had the simple task of finishing into the empty net. Things got much worse for Comrades on 18 minutes. Elliot McKim didn’t get enough on a header back to the ‘keeper allowing Murray to nip in and McKim then hauled him back and got sent off for denying a goal-scoring chance. In the 29th minute they doubled their lead, when they opened up the Comrades defence down the right before Duffin played the ball across for Murray who finished with a fine first-time effort from 16 yards. Three minutes later it was 3-0. Jack Ferguson was penalised for picking up a back pass and from the free kick inside the box Comrades weren’t alert enough, as the ball was played to the unmarked Campbell who finished from 12 yards. Comrades’ horror first half was rounded off in the 42nd minute with the concession of another goal. Claiming for a foul, they lost the ball cheaply on halfway, with Taylor taking full advantage to run forward and finish very well with a low shot from the edge of the box. The visitors’ improved second half performance earned them a consolation goal in the 78th minute when good persistence from Ciaran Heggarty and Chris Ramsey at the edge of the box allowed Ramsey to break through and drill the ball in from 11 yards. Annagh weren’t finished however and a minute into injury-time Ruairi McDonald struck a great low shot from 25 yards into the bottom corner of the net past the despairing dive of Ferguson.