Timmy Grant was the hero for Newry City on Saturday grabbing the winning goal with only two minutes remaining in the top of the table clash with Banbridge Rangers at The Showgrounds. With a full haul of points from six games played Newry now move four points clear of the chasing pack but as usual Newry manager Darren Mullen continues with his policy of looking no further forward than the next game ‘With five minutes to go I was beginning to think it was going to be one of those days after the chances we had missed in the second half. We didn’t start the game well and needed to increase the tempo to trouble their defence. For the latter part of the first half and the majority of the second we were a lot better and looked the more likely to score. We have plenty of pace and movement in our team this year and that always gives us opportunities especially at home. Rather than start lumping the ball into the box for the last five minutes we stuck to our principles and got the rewards with a great finish from Timmy. There’s still a lot of work to be done but we are working hard to make sure we keep our good start going. It was also great to see Mark Lowry make his first appearance of the season after injury. His pace will cause a lot of problems for the opposition this season. Hopefully we can get another good crowd down this Friday night to keep supporting the lads.’

As the Newry manager said his side did not start well with Rangers the first to threaten after eight minutes when Mattie Dodds broke down the Newry left and sent in a low cross which Conor McCaul got to first to clear for a corner. The danger had not passed for the home side as Chris Chambers met the resultant corner at the back post but was unable to get enough power into his headed effort to beat the covering Thomas McCann on the Newry goal line. More than 20 minutes had passed before there was any danger to the Rangers goal, Stephen McCabe drilling a corner along the end line, the ball hitting the post and falling to McCaul but sticking between the Newry mans feet as he attempted to shoot. Just before the half hour mark Rangers were gifted an opportunity when a sloppy clearance by Newry was intercepted by Andy Mallen who spotted that Peter Murphy was a few yards off his line and fired in a dipping shot which clipped the top of the crossbar.

In the later stages of the half Newry gradually won control in the middle of the field with their best player on the day Thomas McCann in the holding position mopping up any loose ball allowing Carville and Walker to push forward which created two late chances. First McCaul again found the ball at his feet inside the six yard box after a McCabe free kick was not dealt with by the Rangers defence but once more McCaul was unable to get a clean strike to the ball. Then just before the whistle Chris McMahon picked out Walker on the edge of the box. Walker instantly flicking the ball into the path of Carville as he arrived into the penalty area only for Ivan Blevins in the Rangers goal to react first getting to the bouncing ball before the Newry man could get his shot in.

This was to be a personal contest which was to develop in the second half which attacking wise was dominated by Newry but for all but that late Grant winner it was Blevins who looked like coming out on top.

Having defended stoutly for the first 15 minutes of the second half Banbridge were bailed out on the hour mark when a long pass out of the Newry defence appeared to have been met with a perfectly timed run by Sean McMullan who now had the freedom of the Rangers half and only Blevins to beat only for the referee, who was some way behind play, judging that McMullan had strayed off side.

What followed developed into a personal battle between Carville and Blevins. On 68 minutes McCabe crossed to the back post where McMullan cushioned a header to Carville on the edge of the small box, Carville stretching to place his header out of Blevins reach, the Rangers custodian flinging himself to his right to claw the ball from behind him to safety. Minutes later and the home side had an even better chance. Again McCabe was the source picking the ball up inside his own half and using the over lapping McMahon to make room to cross, again picking out McMullan inside the box, the centre forward unselfishly setting up Carville who blasted a shot from close range which looked sure to hit the net only for Blevins again to produce a reaction save to deny Newry the opening goal. And with 10 minutes remaining McMullan again turned provider exchanging a short corner with Grant before firing a low cross along the edge of the Rangers goal evading everybody including Carville sliding in at the back post, the ball agonisingly out of his reach.

With so many chances going begging Newry introduced Mark Lowry on the right wing moving Grant into the box to double the strike force. And with time running out this proved to be a master stroke when the home side finally turned their domination into a goal. Niall Crilly who had pushed forward for much of the half curled a perfect ball into the danger area in front of Blevins which Carville at the front post allowed to travel to Grant at the back post, the newly positioned striker making no mistake placing the ball past Blevins much to the relief of the home support for the only goal of the game.

Newrys attention now turns to the Intermediate Cup with a home fixture against Amateur League side Shorts FC next Friday 23^rd October, kick off 20:00.

Newry City AFC: Murphy, Crilly, McMahon, McCaul, Mullen, McCann, Walker, Carville, McMullen, McCabe, Grant. Subs: Lowry, Edgar, Sloan, Johnson, Mooney.

Newry City moved into the third round of the Marshall Cup at The Showground’s on Saturday with a comfortable victory over Lurgan side Hill Street FC.  Similar to many of Newrys recent games Saturdays affair really only kicked into life in the second half with the home side in the first period seemingly content to keep possession and wait for an opening to happen.  Indeed in a dull first half it was Hill Street who came closest to scoring, Gareth Forsythe pulling a low cross back to the edge of the Newry six yard box, Ian Curran winning a tussle with Ian Penny to poke the ball for a corner before the striker could finish.

The second half however brought with it a higher tempo from Newry and that was stepped up again in the final quarter, with the game still scoreless, when Newry introduced the experienced duo of Stephen McCabe and Timmy Grant which immediately brought more attacking options, a point which Newry manager Darren Mullen highlighted after the game “Hill Street had a game plan to frustrate us and although we had the lion’s share of possession we should have played a lot better. Our movement off the ball and our play in the final third wasn’t good enough especially in the first half. Once we introduced Giggsy and Timmy they gave us natural width and we looked a lot more dangerous. This was a game I was always going to try a different shape in and I probably learnt more about what doesn’t suit us than what does. That said we hardly ever looked troubled other than when we got complacent at the end but we know that next week brings another challenge and we will have to be better.”

After that first half when only Jimmy Walker registered a shot on target for Newry it only took two minutes of the second half for them to create a good chance, Walker swinging a cross into the penalty area which was met by Thomas McCann who had ghosted in between the Hill Street centre halves only to be denied by Aaron Kidd diving to his right to tip McCann’s header onto the post.  Newry piled on the pressure urged on by a captain’s performance from Chris McMahon and soon went close again, Sean McMullan nodding McMahons long pass into the path of Niall Crilly who’s first time shot flew over the Hill Street cross bar. Crilly next turned provider as Newry racked up the chances, picking up a pass from Josh Durnin and whipping in a cross which McMullan helped on its way to the back post alas just out of the reach of his strike partner Decky Carville. On the hour mark McMullan thought that he would finally score when Carville won a McCann cross, knocking the ball down to McMullan who toe poked the ball towards the corner of the goal once more denied by a fine save from Kidd.

The visitor’s best chance in this period came from a free kick some 25 yards from the Newry goal which Steven Lawson curled around the wall forcing Peter Murphy into a smart diving save. 

The questions were however being asked at the other end and with the introduction of McCabe and Grant Newry were now banging on the Hill Street door with one attacking movement seeing the ball flash from side to side across the goal and ending with a curling shot from Graeme Edgar which once more Kerr saved pushing Edgars low effort around his post for a corner.  The goal did look like it was coming however and on 75 minutes Carville challenged with Kerr for a high McCabe cross, the ball falling inside the box to McMullan who was in no mood to let another chance go by, drilling the ball past the Hill Street defenders on the goal line to put Newry 1-0 up.   

Having opened the scoring McMullan went close to adding another with 10 minutes remaining this time with a much more spectacular effort. McMahon found Crilly in an advanced position on the right wing, Crilly chipped a pass into McMullan which the big man with his back to goal controlled on his chest, juggled it over his head spinning around his marker to volley on the other side unfortunately unable to keep his shot below the cross bar.

The home side soon sealed the tie, Grant speeding free down the right wing and sending in a speculative ball which caught Kerr of his line only for the ball to hit the crossbar, Carville the first to react taking possession and finding McMullan who rolled the ball back to Walker on the edge of the box, Walker curling his shot low into the corner of Kerr’s goal to put Newry 2-0 up.

With time all but up Hill Street pulled a goal back when a mix up in the Newry defence resulted in a clearance going straight to Lawson about 40 yards from goal, Lawson spotting that Murphy’s goal was now unguarded lobbed a perfect shot straight into the back of the net to reduce his sides arrears. There was however little time for any more action as referee Gerry Murray, who had his usual sound performance, blew the final whistle with Newry safely into round 3.

Newry’s next match is a Mid Ulster League fixture on Saturday next, 17^th October at home to Banbridge Rangers, kick off 2:15pm.

Man of the Match (Presented by Mascot Jake O’Neill): Chris McMahon

Newry City AFC: Murphy, Crilly, Edgar, Curran, McCaul, McCann, McMahon, Walker, Durnin, McMullan, Carville. Subs: McCabe, Grant, Martin, Mullen, Sloan.

Photographs Courtesy of Brendan Monaghan