Newry City sit top of Mid Ulster Intermediate B at Christmas thanks to second half goals from their twin strikers Mark Patton and Peter Thompson which secured the points at a wet and windy Laurelvale. Both scorers will accept however that it was the introduction of Mark Lowry shortly after the break which turned the game in Newry’s favour.

All the action in the game came after a first half which was instantly forgettable bar a miss by the Newry goal scorer Thompson who when presented with the ball by his partner Patton and with only the keeper to beat from six yards out tried to place his shot in the bottom corner, the ball alas slipping the wrong side of the post. For the rest of the half Newry failed to make the most of the strong wind in their favour barely registering a shot at the home keeper.

The first chance of the second half came the way of Laurelvale on 48 minutes when a home corner was cleared to the edge of the box from where a snap shot through the crowded Newry penalty area was cleared off the goal line by Gary McVicker.

Against the wind Newry soon settled into the passing football which has seen them win nine from eleven league games played so far. On the hour mark they introduced Mark Lowry on the right and the speedy winger immediately had a chance to score when he was released by a defence splitting ball from Chris McMahon. With a run on goal from 30 yards Lowry shot from the edge of the box, the ball flying low and wide of the far post. Better was soon to come. Niall Crilly found Patton almost on the bye line with a long throw in. Patton laid the ball back to Crilly who crossed first time to the penalty spot where Thompson rose majestically to bullet a header to the back of the net to redeem his earlier miss.

The Newry lead did not last long however as the home side equalized on 72 minutes with a goal that owed much to the weather. With no other avenues open and the ball thirty yards from goal the home midfielder fired in a low shot which Newry goalkeeper Peter Murphy looked to have covered only for the wind aided shot to take a nasty skip of the wet turf just in front of the keeper to fly over his shoulder into the net to even up the score.

Newry piled on the pressure in a bid to regain the lead but when, with the clock running out, Lowry’s cross found Patton in the box the ball stuck on the muddy surface between the strikers’ feet and he scuffed his shot wide it looked as if the goal would not come. However Patton’s perseverance paid off on 89 minutes. Niall Crilly slid a ball through the defence which Lowry latched on to, first skipping round a chasing defender and then round the advancing keeper before crossing along the six yard box where Patton was waiting at the back post to smash home the winning goal.

Injury time was all about the referee who first sent of a Laurelvale player who spoke out of turn and then brandished a red card at Newry’s Conor McCaul for what at worst was a foul but by no means a red card offence.

In a game which was dictated by the elements best for Newry were the engine room players McCaul and McMahon and whilst Patton and Thompson battled throughout for every ball Man of the Match Mark Lowry added that little extra pace and inventiveness which won the points.

Newry City AFC Team: Murphy, Crilly, McElroy, Annett, McVicker, McMahon, Campbell, McCaul, Lundy, Patton, Thompson. Subs: Walker (McVicker), Lowry (Campbell) , Martin, Edgar, Anderson.

At the end of every month throughout the season Newry City AFC supporters vote on our website for the Senior Player of the Month. The First Team Management then pick the winner from the three players with the most votes in the poll.

Mark Lowry, Conor McCaul and Chris McMahon received the most votes in the November poll but after careful consideration Conor McCaul has been selected for the award. Conor was a rock in the centre of the Newry defence that kept four clean sheets from five games in November.

Newrycityafc.co.uk caught up with Senior Team Manager Darren Mullen, who wished to congratulate Conor on his award.

“Conor has been in terrific form for us all season whether it has been in midfield or defence and fully deserves his award. He has made the step up from Carnbane to Intermediate football with ease and will be a vital player in our push for promotion.”

Newry City’s Irish Cup run came to an end on Saturday at a cold and blustery Larne when they were beaten 4-1 by Amateur League side Crumlin Star. The Newry side started the game slowly and were caught cold inside five minutes when a Newry attack broke down inside the Crumlin half and the home team broke at speed with five quick passes moving play into the Newry box before the ball was slotted into the net to put Crumlin one goal up.

The rest of the half was much more even with both teams having their share of possession without really threatening to score.

Newry started the second half much better than the first and almost equalized straight from the kick off with Chris McMahon and Graeme Edgar combining to release Niall Crilly who’s wind aided cross come shot had the Star keeper in all sorts of trouble as he stretched to fingertip the ball onto the cross bar, the rebound falling to a defender to clear.

Newry were now on the ascendancy and Crilly was again involved in Newry’s second good chance of the half when he found Jimmy Walker in space just outside the Crumlin box. Walker rolled his pass to centre forward Mark Patton who with his back to goal back heeled a defence splitting pass to Walker who had continued his run and now had only the home keeper to beat. Unfortunately Walkers low shot crashed into the keepers legs and rebounded to safety.

It was now Crumlin’s turn to regroup and this they did in style with two quick goals, the second of which was scored by Newry City’s ex Irish League player Francis Murphy, to put the home team 3-0 up.

Newry refused throw in the towel with manager Darren Mullen making substitutions to add some new impetus. This bore dividends within minutes when two of those newly added players combined to put Newry back in the game. Ian Curran found Neil Barr with a long throw in. Barr controlled the ball with his back to goal before spinning and unleashing a dipping shot from 25 yards out which flew into the top corner of the Crumlin net before the keeper had moved. Newry’s attempt at a comeback nearly got better two minutes later when the Crumlin keeper had to dive full length to the base of his post to save a shot from McMahon. However any hopes of a comeback were extinguished with five minutes left when Murphy’s second goal restored Crumlin’s three goal advantage which was more than a little harsh on Newry who competed well throughout with their more experienced opponents.

Newry City AFC Man of the Match: Mark Patton

Newry resume their league campaign on Saturday 14^th December away to Laurelvale at 2pm. Newry City AFC Travel Club bus will be departing from the Stonebridge at 1pm sharp, all are welcome!.

Newry City AFC Team: Murphy, Crilly, Anderson, Annett, McCaul, Edgar, McMahon, McElroy, Patton, Walker, Lundy. Subs: Curran, Martin, Barr, Campbell, Thompson, McVicker.