A super hat-trick of goals from striker Mark McCabe helped Newry City return to winning ways at Dundela on Saturday securing three very valuable league points which puts them right back into the title race. There was however much more to Saturdays win over Dundela, Newry taking an early lead before conceding two quick goals after the break. That scenario has become all too familiar to the Newry faithful except on Saturday the Newry boys rolled up their sleeves and built a winning lead before toughing out the final 15 minutes with 10 men which pleased manager Darren Mullen “This was a really hard game and one where we are delighted to come away with three points. To be 2-1 down and come back in the manner we did can only be good for the player’s confidence. We’ve been on a poor run of late but the players have never dropped their heads and deserve great credit for turning this game around. Mark McCabe will rightly grab the headlines for his hat-trick especially for his second and third but as a team we worked so hard today. The coaching staff have continuously told the players that no matter what happens if they continue to work hard they will get their rewards. Thankfully that happened today against a Dundela side who will take points off a lot of teams this season especially at home. What we need to do now is take this confidence and work rate into the next game away to Queens.”

The tight confines of Wilgar Park usually mean that goals will flow and Newry had a great chance to open the scoring after only 5 minutes, Mark McCabe cutting the Dundela defence open giving Decky Carville a run-on goal, Jonathan Sergeant quickly off his line to block Carville’s shot. The visitors followed this up with another half chance, Keith Johnston whipping in a cross for Mark Patton to deflect onto the roof of the net with a glancing header. Play was end to end, the Newry goal getting a scare when James Sofley broke down the left wing before fizzing the ball across the face of the Newry net, the danger cleared by Stephen McCabe at the back post.

Newry obviously had their homework done with a changed game plan to hit the twin strike force of McCabe and Carville with long passes and this paid off after 22 minutes when Mark McCabe contested a long ball on the edge of the Dundela penalty area, McCabe the first to react after Sergeant flapped at the bouncing ball, the Newry striker grabbing the opportunity to stroke the ball through Dundela defenders into the net to give Newry the lead. Dundela also had chances, Peter Murphy producing a fine save to turn a shot from Ben Roy around the post. The final chance of the half came Newry’s way, to plan Murphy delivered a long kick out for Mark McCabe to win, knocking the ball down to Carville who was unfortunate to pull his shot wide of the far post.

The home side were quickly out of the blocks in the second half and soon had Newry on the back foot so much so that it looked only a matter of time until the equalizer came, a mixture of bad luck, bad finishing and an excellent save from Murphy keeping the Newry goal intact. However, the pressure had to tell and the equalizer duly arrived after 53 minutes, Roy unfortunate when his effort smacked off the post but equally lucky that the rebound fell perfectly for Mark McCelland to drill the ball past Murphy. With their tail’s up Dundela quickly went a goal up, McCelland setting up Jamie Jackson some 25 yards from goal, the winger giving the Newry keeper little chance with a dipping shot which ripped into the top of the Newry net to give his side the lead.

As they needed to do the Newry boys knuckled down in a bid to rescue the points. Indeed, the chance for the equalizer owed much to a strong fifty fifty challenge from Carville outside the Dundela penalty area, the ball breaking favourably for Mark McCabe. The Newry marksman still had much to do to score but he made it look easy nutmegging the first defender before shooting across Sergeant, the ball hitting the far top corner of the Dundela goal for a precision finish. Newry regained the lead on 65 minutes with a goal set up by the quick thinking of Thomas McCann, his free kick aimed to the feet of Carville on the edge of the penalty area not dealt with by Dundela, McCabe once more alert to the chance latching onto the loose ball before firing an unstoppable shot high into the Dundela net to give Newry a 3-2 lead.

And that’s how it stayed for the remaining 25 minutes despite Newry losing Decky Carville who was sent off for successive yellow cards for technical offences by the very competent referee Matthew Goodricke. That’s not to say Dundela didn’t have their chances to equalize the best of which came after 70 minutes when McCelland, who enjoyed 90 minutes of battle with Newry’s Marcus McKeown, managed to shake off his marker and looked to be clear for a run-on goal only for a perfectly timed challenge from Paddy Mooney who got across to clear the danger and ultimately secure the points for Newry.

Newry now travel to play Queens on Saturday 4^th February, kick off 3pm. Newry City travel club bus will leave The Stonebridge at 1:15pm.

Newry City AFC: Murphy, S McCabe, Mooney, Mullen, McKeown, Patton, McCann, Johnston, M McCabe, Carville, Hughes. Subs: Grant, Curran, Lowry, Walker, King.

Darren Mullen is delighted to announce the signing of John Boyle to Newry. “This signing is a big statement of intent for the club. We had been poor defensively of late and John is exactly what we need. He is a natural leader and comes with a wealth of experience not only in this division but having played premiership football for three seasons. To get someone of his stature is never easy but he believes in what we are trying to achieve at the club and hopefully he will be here for the next 3-4 years. I’m sure our fans will be delighted with this signing and I’ve no doubt he will improve what is already a strong squad.”

John Boyle commented “it has been a long hard week but I am very pleased with how it has all worked out. I know and have played with a lot of the boys and I am excited to catch up with them again and get stuck in to help with the promotion push! I know the club has big ambitions and I hope I can play a big part in helping to deliver that over the coming months.”

 

Photograph courtesy of Ally McKenzie

Newry Manager Darren Mullen is delighted to add another player to his talented squad with the acquisition of goalkeeper Kieran Gordon.

“The goalkeepers position is one we badly needed cover in. We lost Martin Marron to injury and Jack Heaney has been with Down U21s so it was vital we brought someone in to provide competition for Murph. Kieran comes highly recommended and I’ve spoken to several players who have played with or against him. They have all spoken highly of him and he will be given his chance to impress like every other player in the senior squad. Having two quality players for each position can only be good for the team and hopefully Kieran enjoys his time at the club.’

Kieran Gordon added that he is “delighted to have signed for Newry City. Newry is a club that didn’t need to be sold to me, the facilities and the professionalism of the club are second to none. I am fully aware of the pressure that comes with playing for a big club like Newry and it is a challenge that I’m really looking forward to.”

Newry City allowed a two-goal lead to disappear and with it their hopes of Intermediate Cup success at The Showgrounds on Saturday against Belfast side Crumlin Star. While many of the home spectators will point to some dubious decisions from referee Andrew Woodside, which undoubtedly changed the game, Newry manager Darren Mullen will be most concerned by the amount of goals his team have been conceding particularly after they have taken the lead in a game, a trait which has seen them crash out of two cups and lose valuable league points.

A repeat of that scenario looked unlikely on Saturday after a first half of attacking football during which the Newry boys created many chances from which they grabbed two fine goals thanks to quality finishes from Mark Hughes and Keith Johnston. Strangely with attack minded players all over the pitch it took Newry 20 minutes to create their first good chance, Stephen McCabe skipping past challenges down the left wing before finding Johnston inside the box, his shot partially blocked by Star goalkeeper Ciaran McNeill but still appeared destined for the net only for back spin to take over, the ball slowing enough to allow a defender to get back to clear from his goal line.

The next chance also fell to Johnston, created by Marcus McKeown driving forward from half way before setting up Johnston in a similar position to before, this time the striker’s effort beat both McNeill and the post as it fizzed wide. Newry kept probing, Thomas McCann picking the ball up on the half way line before pushing forward, feigning to pass from the edge of the box before cutting back on his right and drilling a shot which looked destined for the net only to be headed away from goal for a corner. Cue the opening goal, Johnston’s corner headed by a Star defender to the edge of the box from where Mark Hughes smashed a perfect left foot volley into the top corner of the Crumlin Star net to put Newry a goal up.

The visitors could have equalized minutes later, David Fearon knocking the ball down to Niall Hawkins who from ten yards out blasted wildly over the bar. Five minutes before the break Newry doubled their advantage, McKeown again bursting forward from half way before playing the ball wide to Hughes, he in turn took the ball to the end line before spotting Johnston’s clever run to find space at the near post, the striker opening his body to side foot the ball into the roof of the Star net to leave Newry 2-0 up at the break.

For one reason or another that was as good as it got for Newry as they allowed the visitors back into the game shortly after the restart, centre forward Fearon cleverly rolling his marker on the edge of the box before giving Peter Murphy no chance with an unstoppable shot. Both teams swapped chances before the decisive moment of the game, referee Woodside ruling that Kevin McArdle had dived in an attempt to win a penalty as he arrived at speed into the Star penalty area. Having previously booked McArdle a second yellow brandished by Woodside meant that Newry were reduced to 10 men for the rest of the game. And they paid the price for that on 65 minutes when Kevin Trainor found Fearon unmarked at the back post, the centre forward clinical with his finish to level the scores.

If Newry felt aggrieved by the referee up to now worse was to come on 80 minutes when the stylish Barry McKevrey hooked a long ball forward for Ciaran Murphy, who appeared to be yard’s offside, to run onto and nonchalantly lob the ball over Murphy to but his side 3-2 ahead. Newry threw caution to the wind in the final minutes and believed they had won a penalty kick with time running out when Hawkins raised his boot as he attempted to clear a bouncing ball only to make simultaneous contact with the head of Marcus McKeown, referee Woodside instead opting to award an indirect free kick to the home side which came to nothing leaving the final score 3-2 in favour of Crumlin Star.

Although obviously frustrated after the game Newry manager Darren Mullen chose his words carefully “I have to watch what I say about officials but what I will say is that although it’s a difficult job they have to be fit for purpose. We’ve gone from winning 2-1 with a clear penalty to make it 3-1 to having a man sent off for apparently diving and losing 3-2 to a clear offside goal. If we were beat without playing well I would be the first to admit it but to lose in the manner we did is very frustrating. Our first half performance was exactly what we wanted and we were well worth our two goal lead. The players were well warned that the game was far from over at half time and although their first goal was well taken we still should have seen the game out. Although certain decisions didn’t help we still need to defend a lot better and it’s something I need to deal with before we get back to league action next Saturday.”

Newry City’s next came is on Saturday 28^th Jan at Dundela, kick off 2pm. Newry City travel club bus will leave The Stonebridge at 12:15.

Before that on Thursday 26^th January Newry City AFC will host a Consultation Event at The Showgrounds at 7:30pm where they will present proposed development plans for a new facility at The Showgrounds which will include a community space i.e. community and training rooms, new hybrid stadium pitch and a floodlit 3G pitch. Newry City ask sports clubs, schools, community organisations and charities who may wish to utilise the proposed shared community and sporting facilities to come along to the event where members of the project development team will be available to discuss the proposals and answer questions. If you are unable to attend and would like more information please contact Richard Forsythe on 07835771951 or contact Richard by email at richard@copiusconsulting.co.uk

Photographs Courtesy of Brendan Monaghan Photography.

Newry City AFC: Murphy, Hughes, McArdle, Mullen, Curran, McKeown, McCann, Lowry, McCabe, Johnston, Hughes. Subs: Grant, Walker, Patton, Mooney, McCaul.

Newry City hit four unanswered goals to come back from 3-1 down at Bangor on Saturday to secure all three points and end a run of five successive defeats. In those circumstances to win was even more important than normal for Newry and having gone two goals down shortly after half time the omens could not have been good for the travelling Newry faithful but that’s not how Newry manager Darren Mullen saw it “Anyone who had watched our last two games would have seen the improvement in our play and to me this result was not a big surprise. At 3-1 down for some a victory may not have looked likely but I knew we would make chances and that comeback shows the spirit we have within the squad. After going one up we needed to stay solid for the next five minutes and paid the price for not doing so. Simple defensive mistakes cost us again but at the other end we always looked threatening. We discussed our shape for this game at training on Thursday night and offensively I thought our game plan worked very well creating plenty of chances. We can’t give teams at this level three goals but if there was a dramatic way to win a game then this was it. Once we equalised there only looked to be one winner and thankfully the lads got the reward that their effort and belief deserved. We didn’t panic with our recent poor run and we won’t get carried away with this victory but it gives a good chance to hopefully start putting a run of results together”

With the artificial surface at The Bangor Arena suiting Newry’s fast passing style of play it was no surprise that they opened the scoring with a move woven between four players. Kevin McArdle launching the attack from the half way line, the ball moving through the feet of Mark McCabe, Marty Havern and Keith Johnston before McArdle turned up inside the box to finish the sequence with a shot to the bottom corner of the Bangor net.

Newry failed to protect the lead conceding an equalizer almost immediately from a free kick which was whipped into the box, Ian Curran most unfortunate to turn the ball into his own net. However Newry were creating lots of chances and in  quick succession had three opportunities to restore the lead, Havern rattling the cross bar from 30 yards with the Bangor keeper beaten, then Johnston skipped past tackles to cross for McCabe to force a save from Gibbons and to end this flurry of attack’s Mark Hughes picked the ball up on the half way line before meandering his way to the end line before drilling a low ball across the goal mouth which only needed the right deflection to count.

As so often happens Newry were made to pay for not converting any of these chances with 23 minutes gone when they attempted to shepherd the ball over the goal line, the ball retrieved by Bangor and eventually recycled to the edge of the box from where Jordan Lucas gave Peter Murphy no chance with a clinical finish.

On the half hour mark Murphy did rescue his team, a crossed ball to the edge of the box controlled by a combination of the chest and arm of Jordan Baxter and with the Newry fans appealing for handball his low shot forced a fine reaction save from the Newry keeper. McArdle was the stand out player for Newry and the defender had a chance to level the scores before the break, Hughes again picking the ball up on half way before switching play to Havern on the right wing, his first touch into the path of McArdle who shot for the near post only to find the side netting.

Things got worse for Newry on 50 minutes when a well worked free kick from the home side caught Newry napping. With a free kick wide on the right Bangor players congregated at the back post, Newry surprised by a low ball to the penalty spot. Although Armstrong only half connected with his shot the ball broke to Bangor’s debutant Baxter who scored from close range to put his side 3-1 up.

A 6^th defeat appeared not an option for the Newry boys as they rolled up their sleeves with McKeown, McCabe, Hughes, Havern and Johnston amongst those turning in with star performances. They got back into the game straight away, McArdle feeding the ball down the line to Havern who from the corner of the box attempted an audacious lob to the far post which Gibbons could only knock down, Hughes first to the ball feigning to go outside his marker before cutting back to an acute angle to beat the keeper at his near post to reduce the arrears.

The equalizer saw Newry back to their best, Hughes and Johnston swapping passes before Johnston picked out McCabe in the box with a pin point cross, the striker cleverly nodding the ball back for Havern to control in his stride before blasting a volley into the back of the Bangor net to level the scores.

It was all Newry at this stage and on 68 minutes McCabe’s persistence forced the home side into conceding a corner which Johnston swung into the 6-yard box perfect for Marcus McKeown to grab the reward for his performance with a towering header to put Newry 4-3 ahead.

For their part Bangor reacted well and had chances for the equalizer both of which required the attention of Peter Murphy. First up on 75 minutes Baxter was on the end of neat passing play setting him up to try his luck from 30 yards, Murphy stretching to tip the ball over his crossbar. And they had a better chance minutes later, Dwaine Beattie running onto a long ball over the Newry defence. Murphy staying big to win the duel blocking Beattie’s shot with his body before smothering the loose ball.

Newry sealed the game on 86 minutes with a carbon copy of the previous goal. Once more Johnston swung a dangerous corner across the goal, this time Mark Patton won the physical battle inside the box rising highest to get a glancing head to guide the ball past Gibbons to secure the points and a morale boosting win for Newry.

 

Newry next match is another league match away to Moyola Park on Saturday 14^th January, kick of 3pm. Newry City travel club bus will leave The Stonebridge at 12:30

Newry City AFC: Murphy, McArdle, King, Mullen, Curran, McCann, McKeown, Hughes, M McCabe, Havern, Johnston. Subs: McMullan, Patton, Lowry, Grant, S McCabe.