Drumaness lose at home to East for second time

Drumaness lose at home to East for second time

12 November 2025

DRUMANESS Mills were unable to exact revenge for their Border Cup exit as East Belfast came out on top at Meadowvale for the second time this season.

On a day where it seemed every decision went against them, the Mills were denied three clear penalties, while East, who opened the scoring with a dubious penalty of their own, escaped being reduced to 10 men.

Put simply, nothing went right for the hosts, whether it was the referee’s calls, the absences of goalkeeper Aaron Carberry and talisman Jack Sharvin, or having a shot cleared off the line, and their opponents took full advantage.

Drumaness went on the offensive from the first whistle, and it took a save from Scott Mashal to prevent Declan Looney from opening the scoring with a curling effort.

At the other end, East Belfast were probing, but the home defence held firm and stand-in goalkeeper Keegan Domican was only tested with a few simple catches in the early stages.

While the Mills appeared to have the greater intent, keeping the ball on the ground and playing their way into the opposition box on numerous occasions, they were left frustrated by the officiating. 

The referee waved away appeals for a pair of seemingly stonewall penalties when Callum Dougan and Anton McGrattan were chopped down in the box within seconds of each other.

Still, the home players were not deterred, opting for a change of direction and pumping crosses into the box, two of which were snatched off the head of McGrattan around the 25-minute mark.

However, they were left with mouths agape after East captain Daryl Evans avoided a dismissal for a high, crunching challenge on McGrattan — a decision that had huge ramifications just minutes later.

That was because the visitors were awarded a controversial spot kick when Kyle Woods took a tumble in the box, under minimal, if any, contact from Stefan Mason, and that man Evans stepped up to open the scoring.

Drumaness created a series of chances towards the end of the first half, all to no avail. Looney’s pile-driver was swept off the line by the recovering Bradley Porter, before McGrattan’s rebound was blocked and Mason’s rocket was stopped by a world-class save. 

If that was not enough to dispirit the home players, matters went from bad to worse on the cusp of half-time, as Jaydyn Withers met a ball from Woods and fired a bullet past Domican, increasing the margin.

The Mills dusted themselves down during the interval and came out firing in the second half, threatening with a pair of McGrattan free-kick deliveries and Tom McNeill strike that went inches wide of the post, but their efforts were quickly left in vain.

A failed clearance was closed down by Withers, who swooped in to snatch possession and rifle into the far corner from range, doubling his tally and firing his team out of sight.

Rocked by gifting their opponents a third goal, Drumaness found themselves at sixes and sevens and although they were awarded a corner, they left just one man back — a mistake they almost came to regret.

Kyle Flynn broke on the counter for the Belfast side and beat the solitary defender, Sean Og Gallagher, with a dizzying run, only to launch miles over the bar in a one-on-one with Domican.

Patrick Shearer, who came on to provide fresh legs, and fresh impetus, for the home side, almost made the desired impact. 

His first effort seemed destined for the bottom corner and was directed wide of the upright by a crucial deflection, before he rattled the crossbar with an audacious volley.

The hosts’ late pressure paid off when they were finally awarded a penalty, in the 79th minute, and while Dougan’s conversion provided a glimmer of hope, any comeback ambitions were soon eliminated. 

East Belfast youngster Noah Mitchell looked to have put the game to bed with a clinical, 86th-minute finish, yet there was still time for the away side to make it a five-star performance. 

Withers sealed his hat-trick with one of the goals of the season, arrowing into the top corner with a spectacular, long-range strike in the 90th minute.

On another day, without key absentees and decisions going against them, the Mills could have left a completely contrasting impact on the game.

They will look to bounce back when they welcome Mossley to Meadowvale in their next league match, while the exciting prospect of a trip to Newry City sits on the horizon in the Irish Cup.

Drumaness: K Domican, K McCleery, S Holland, A Garland, G Murdock (captain), S Og Gallagher, D Looney, A McGrattan, C Dougan, S Mason, T McNeill.

Subs: P Shearer, E Murray, A Mooney. 

East Belfast: S Mashal, B Porter, L McCullough, T Evans, J Kinner, R Kelly, N Mitchell, D Evans (captain), J Withers, K Woods, K Flynn.

Subs: D Haggan, J Edge, R McCaughan.

Drumaness Mills 1

East Belfast 5

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