Victory secures second place finish for ‘Hinch

19 February 2014

BALLYNAHINCH guaranteed runners-up spot in Senior Two with a superb performance in this eight-goal thriller.

The locals now have an unassailable lead over third-placed Armagh and with Portrush set to lift the title, Leslie Harrison’s men will now face whoever finishes second from bottom in Senior 1 in a play-off at the end of the season.

Ballynahinch have been consistent performers all season and played with style last weekend against a side they have already beaten at home. In fact, the sides lock horns again this Saturday when they meet in the new Senior 2 league cup.

But back to last weekend. Armagh knew they were in for a tough game at the outset and their cause wasn’t helped when a midfielder was dismissed after he squared up to a Ballynahinch player early on. The umpire who saw the incident had no hesitation issuing a red card.

The locals dominated the opening 10 minutes and created a number of early chances through Stuart Hunter, David Bolton and Jason Campbell as 10-man Armagh were forced to defend deep.

Ballynahinch took the lead in the 12th minute from a short corner. When the ball came to skipper Harrison on the edge of the penalty area, his first time shot flew past the young Armagh ‘keeper before he had time to set himself.

To their credit, the home side upped the ante and Ballynahinch ‘keeper Mark Brown again proved why he is one of the best with a number of important saves to keep his side in the game.

But Brown was beaten in the 17th minute when Armagh scored from play.

While the goal should have energised the home side, it reignited Ballynahinch’s desire to secure that runners-up spot.

The visitors went 2-1 ahead in the 22nd minute following a sweeping move started by their inspirational skipper who was back to his best.

Harrison collected a pass from the hard-working Adam McKee and drove forward, cleverly picking out Hunter inside the penalty area whose deft flick resulted in the ball nestling in the back of the net.

With five minutes of the half remaining and the visitors keen to go in with their noses in front, Armagh hit back to make it 2-2 from a short corner. A cross was deflected high into the Ballynahinch area and when McKee raised his stick above his head to control it the umpire penalised the defender and awarded a penalty corner.

To add insult to injury, McKee was green-carded and spent the next two minutes watching the action from the sideline.

Ballynahinch were keen to regain the upper hand at the start of the second period and everything went exactly according to plan.

Harrison picked out Hunter who in turn fed Campbell and a quick look up from the big forward spotted Ashley Brown unmarked. Campbell rolled the ball into the midfielder’s path and he calmly chipped the ball over the ‘keeper for a great team goal.

Armagh may have been down to 10 men but they kept battling and Mark Brown was again called into action to maintain his side’s single goal advantage, producing a number of timely saves.

Ballynahinch virtually guaranteed runners-up spot with their fourth goal of the afternoon. Campbell gets the glory for scoring, but the efforts of Darren Roe, Ashley Brown and Hunter in the build-up deserve a mention.

The trio combined during a sweeping move which allowed Campbell to pounce in front of goal to score a deserved fourth for his side.

With the job done, the visitors sat back and invited Armagh on to them, but the visitors produced a few sweeping counter-attacks with Bolton and Campbell going close at the other end.

Ballynahinch’s fifth goal came 10 minutes from time, with Andy McIlwaine the architect of the goal. He went down the right and slipped the ball to Bolton who slipped it between a defender’s legs before finishing with aplomb.

In the closing minutes, an uncharacteristic mistake by the experienced Lawrence Patterson allowed Armagh to score a third but it was too little too late.

Ballynahinch’s win secured runners-up spot in the Senior Two and the locals are now looking forward to competing in the Senior Two League Cup competition. But the locals have been drawn in the group of death, having to face Armagh and league leaders Portrush.

Armagh 3

Ballynahinch 5

SENIOR 2

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