Horror result for the Comrades
Wednesday, 29 October 2008
Ballyclare Comrades 0. Banbridge Town 5.
Saturday 25th October 2008 - IFA Championship.
A HORRENDOUS second half performance saw Comrades slump to a humiliating defeat at home to Banbridge Town, a result which leaves them struggling badly at the wrong end of the league table.
For this game Comrades had to do without in form striker Eddie Hill, out for 4 to 6 weeks with a rib injury. Paul Caldwell returned to the starting line up, with Michael Smith moving into midfield and Mark Craig starting up front up front with Ronnie Burns.
The game kicked off in wind and wet conditions, and not surprising it was difficult for the players from both sides to play good football. The game was scrappy early on, with neither side gaining any sort of control. It was not until the 17th minute that the first half chance came when Simon McGowan latched on to a loose ball 20 yards out, but his shot flew comfortably wide of goal.
On 22 minutes Banbridge came close when a loose clearance from Andy Long was picked up by Irwin who played the ball to Malone, in a good position 12 yards out. Comrades were fortunate that the resulting shot was dragged wide of the near post.
The home side were sporadically producing some neat approach play and on 24 minutes they fashioned a chance when a good link up between Michael Smith and Ronnie Burns on the right side of the box ended with Burns striking a good shot from 13 yards, which the impressive Town keeper Wilton pushed past the near post.
Two minutes later however, the visiting keeper was perhaps a bit fortunate as a Ronnie Burns shot from 20 yard almost slipped under him, but he managed an unconventional block and just managed to prevent the ball crossing the line.
Both sides were giving a lot of endeavour in the difficult conditions, but were finding it hard to create anything. However, on 37 minute Comrades had a great chance to take the lead. Michael Smith produced a trademark surging run down the right and then crossed low into the path of Mark Craig, who shot over from a great position 10 yards from goal.
A minute from the break it was Comrades who breathed a sigh of relief when a ball into the box from a deep position was headed on to the top of his won bar by Evan Forsythe.
The wind, although blowing diagonally across the pitch had been in favour of Comrades in the first half, but it did not seem such an advantage until the visitors showed how to use it in the second half.
Only three minute into the half and Town took the lead. A cross from the left was headed in to the net by the poorly marked Irwin, 7 yards out.
This was to be the theme of a second half horror show from Comrades, as any decent cross or high ball into the home box seemed to produce a goal.
On 54 minutes Town scored a second goal. A free-kick was played into the box and Irwin again was on hand to strike a shot into the net from 14 yards.
At the other end Comrades tried gamely to respond and in the 55th minute the hard working Michael Smith saw a shot from just outside the box flash narrowly wide of goal.
However, the visitors still looked the much more dangerous side, using their height and the wind advantage to the maximum, where Comrades struggled to create anything with their sometimes over-elaborate attacking moves.
It was no surprise when on 63 minutes it became 0-3, when a cross from the right again found the Comrades defence wanting and Kane headed home unchallenged.
The game was now all but lost for Comrades and if they were to have any chance of retrieving anything from the game they really needed Stuart McClean's shot from the edge of the box on 75 minutes to sneak inside the far post, or be touched in by the arriving Ronnie Burns, but instead it flew just past the post.
To be fair however, Banbridge looked far more like adding to their lead and they nearly did so a minute later when a free-kick into the box was sent just wide from a stopping header by Kane. Then, on 85 minutes Ian Mannus had to produce a fine save to push a shot from Keenan from 14 yards past the post. However, the resulting corner was headed in by Irwin for his hat-trick.
The agony was still not complete for the home side as Irwin bagged his team's firth and his fourth goal, with a low shot from the edge of the box, to further humiliate a dejected Comrades side.
This was an abject second half display from Comrades and, combined with lethal finishing from the visitors; it could produce only one result.
Other than in the Steel & Sons Cup, the team is struggling at present to live up to its potential. The same goal scoring problems exist as last season, but whereas then goals were not being conceded; now the opposition is too often finding goals easy to come by.
Ballyclare Comrades team: Ian Mannus, Paul Caldwell, Andy Long, Evan Forsythe, Davy Freyne, Michael Smith, Simon McGowan, Stuart McClean, Gary Bell, Mark Craig, Ronnie Burns.
Bench: Andy Ferguson (68 mins, for Forsythe), Ryan Murray (81mins, for Freyne), Lee Lenaghan (86 mins, for McGowan).
