SEPTEMBER 2005
28th September:
CIVIC
RECEPTION
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Glenavon Chairman Roy Ferguson pictured with the
Mayor of Craigavon, Alderman George Savage at Wednesday's
reception at Craigavon Civic Centre. |
Representatives of Glenavon FC and Hill Street FC attended a Civic
reception as guests of Craigavon Borough Council on Wednesday evening.
The event was held to recognize the historic occasion of Hill Street
winning the Junior Cup, Glenavon winning the Intermediate Cup and
Portadown winning the Irish Cup. This is the first, and probably only
time, when all three trophies will be held simultaneously by teams from
the Borough.
Sadly Portadown FC declined the Council's invitation.
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Angela Cherry (left) and Maureen Swift are
usually busy on match days supplying tea and refreshments to the
visiting officials in the boardroom. The ladies are pictured with
the Mid-Ulster Cup and Intermediate Cup, both won by Glenavon in
the 2004-2005 Season. |
24th September: HARD-FOUGHT DRAW
Glenavon
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2-2
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Dungannon Swifts
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McMahon 31 (pen)
O'Connor 76 |
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Adamson 34
Fitzpatrick 59 |
Jimmy Brown's Glenavon side finally broke the worrying chain of defeats with
a hard fought draw against Dungannon Swifts. The home side took the lead with a
Gerard McMahon penalty in the 31st minute after Aidan McVeigh had been felled by
Darren Murphy's challenge. The lead lasted only three minutes though with
Dungannon's leading scorer Timmy Adamson powering home a close-range header from
John Paul Gallagher's in-swinging corner.
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Aaron Black faces a suspension after picking up his 5th
caution of the season. |
McMahon, Conor Walsh and Paul Evans had all had first half shots well saved
by Cushley with Ward and Adamson wasting good opportunities for the visitors.
Marty Verner limped off early in the second half with what looked like a
hamstring injury. Seconds later McVeigh's shot from a couple of yards was
blocked on the line by McMinn. Glenavon was enjoying a good period of play when
Swifts' skipper Gary Fitzpatrick ghosted in unmarked at the back post to head in
McAree's free kick and give his side the lead.
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Kieran O'Connor heads the Glenavon equaliser |
The visitors missed a couple of good chances to go further ahead before
Kieran O'Connor popped up with a deft header to guide Montgomery's cross past
the despairing dive of Cushley.
McDonald made two excellent saves to deny Ward's spectacular overhead kick
and a deflected effort from Darren Murphy's injury time free kick that ensured
Glenavon went away with a hard-earned point.
Match report
Post-match reactions
Jimmy Brown: "I think a draw was a fair result all round.
Obviously we scored and they came back then they went ahead and we came
back. In the end I was pleased to get the first point of the campaign.
"It was a bit of ‘backs to the wall’ stuff for us mid-way through the
second half but, fair play to the defence and the goalkeeper, they
withstood it and then we got back into it with a good goal from Kieran
O’Connor.
“The two goals that we conceded were set pieces and that disappoints me from
a defensive point of view so that’s something we’ll have to work on. Andy
(McDonald) pulled us out on two occasions near the end of the game and one
particular save, in injury time, where it took a deflection and not only did he
save it but he held it so I was very pleased with him for that aspect of the
game.”
Joe McAree: "2-1 up, three sitters missed in that bottom goals:
scandalous. I don't mind the keeper making good saves but when the keeper
doesn't even have to save them ... At 2-1 I thought we were in complete control
of the match; not a problem.
"We defended poorly for their first goal. Darren Murphy had no call to go
anywhere near it. We had enough chances to win it but there was more sloppy
defending for the Glenavon equaliser so I feel we threw away two points today."
20th September: LOSING STREAK GOES ON
Glenavon
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2-3
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Newry City
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| McVeigh 68, 89 |
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Whitehead 28, 38, 85 |
Despite two excellent goals from Aidan McVeigh, given his first start of the
season in a team showing five changes from Saturday as manager Jimmy Brown
shuffled the pack, Glenavon still failed to break its losing streak. Newry
grabbed all three points and ensured progress to the Quarter Finals of the CIS
Cup thanks to a hat trick from striker Damien Whitehead and a last minute save
by Robert Robinson from a Gerard McMahon penalty, awarded when Pat McAllister
hauled down Shea Campbell.
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Aidan McVeigh was a handful for the Newry defence
but even his two goal haul could not prevent Glenavon slipping to a
seventh consecutive defeat. |
Earlier in the second half Glenavon had had a blatant penalty ignored by the
referee Mr Penney when Barry Curran clearly pushed Paul Evans as he raced into
the box and was about to strike Farrell's low cross. No wonder Jimmy Brown was
left bemoaning his luck after the game but, as he said, "you can't give any team
a two goal start and hope to win the game."
Match report
17th September: GAME
OF TWO HALVES
Linfield
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2-1
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Glenavon
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Thompson 62
Ferguson 81 |
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Verner 43 |
A superb first half Glenavon performance culminated with an exquisite goal by
Marty Verner just before half time. It was scant reward for an excellent first
45 minutes, with Glenavon again guilty of wasting a number of good
opportunities, the final ball too often going astray.
The opening goal came seconds after Andy McDonald made a great save to deny
Peter Thompson after Ferguson played him in. The ball was cleared up to Verner
in the centre circle and he exchanged a one-two with Campbell before racing down
the left. His turn in the box left Baillie in a tangle and he coolly took the
ball round Mannus before slotting it home.
Despite a probable ear bashing from David Jeffrey at the interval, Linfield
was slow to get going in the second half but as the hour mark approached the
pressure did begin to mount on Glenavon. The equaliser, when it came, was a
scrappy affair. McDonald punched a free kick only as far as the 18 yard line and
Linfield sub Jamie Mulgrew struck a shot that came back off the bar. Gault
headed the rebound back onto the woodwork via a Glenavon defender's head and
Thompson nodded in from right on the goal line.
McDonald will be disappointed with the Linfield winner as he allowed a Glenn
Ferguson header to sneak in at the near post with the keeper sticking out a boot
rather than making any attempt to dive to his right for what looked to be a
routine save.
Match Report
MARTY
VERNER
Striker Marty Verner will not "abandon hope" when
Glenavon takes on Linfield in this weekend’s intriguing Premier League
pipe opener. Although, on paper, the meeting of the Blues’ Brothers looks
like a complete mismatch, the 23 year old North Belfast man refuses to
accept that the top flight new boys will have Dante’s famous expression on
their minds when they take the field at Windsor Park tomorrow. "Whilst I
can understand why they are favourites to beat us, I don’t think we are
the rank outsiders that everyone is making us out to be," said Verner.
"Certainly, Linfield are in great form, scoring goals and playing with a
lot of confidence. However, we are in a positive frame of mind too, and
really looking forward to the occasion."
Verner, a forklift driver by occupation, is a natural
predator. Two years ago he was the Amateur League’s top marksman with 57
goals. Last time out he finished leading scorer in the First Division with
30 strikes. This season he has already found the net twice in two starts.
"My game is all about finishing," he continued. "I have a bit of pace, can
hold it up and am a reasonable distributor of the ball, but making the
most of chances in and around the six yard box is what I do best. Although
this is my debut season at the top level, I am beginning to settle. This
weekend’s trip to Windsor Park is another opportunity for me to show
people what I am capable of."
A summer signing from Bangor, Verner acknowledges that
Glenavon’s CIS Insurance Cup results – five straight defeats - have been
disappointing. "Obviously, we would have much preferred to be starting the
league campaign on the back of a run of wins," the Ballysillan man admits.
"However, that is not the position and we just have to deal with it. But
that doesn’t mean that we can’t turn things around. There are decent
players in our squad. Aaron Black, Kieran O’Connor and Gerard McMahon, for
example, are all good enough to be playing at a higher level. It is also
true that we have created goalscoring opportunities in every one of our
five matches to date. If we get the breaks, and everyone performs to the
level that they are capable of, I wouldn’t bet against us causing an upset
against Linfield."
INJURY-TIME
HEARTBREAK
Glenavon
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1-2
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Ballymena Utd
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Verner 67 |
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Melly 22
Kelbie 90 |
After battling back from a 1-0 half-time deficit to claim a deserved
equaliser through Marty Verner, it looked as though Glenavon would claim a first
point in the CIS Cup. Unfortunately, a misplaced back pass from Johnny
Montgomery gave Kevin Kelbie an open goal to aim at and he made no mistake from
the edge of the box.
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Ballymena's captain, Gary Smyth, competes for the
ball with Davy McAlinden |
Ballymena had taken a well-deserved lead through Dominic Melly who smashed a
left foot volley into the roof of the net when the ball fell to him about 12
yards out after Glenavon failed to clear a deep cross.
The home side were much improved in the second half as they concentrated on
getting the ball down and playing it on the turf. Verner equalised with a
close-range tap-in at the end of a flowing Glenavon move that started with a
pin-point diagonal ball from McMahon to Garth Walsh. He fed Campbell and his low
cross left the former Bangor striker an easy finish. He and Campbell had both
spurned excellent chances in the first half and that injury time winner for
United once again left Glenavon rueing missed opportunities.
Match report
POST-MATCH
REACTIONS
Jimmy Brown
"I thought Ballymena were the better side in the first half but I
thought were by far the better side in the second half but you can’t make
mistakes in those areas. We were really camped in their half but one slip
and you’re punished. Andy McDonald had nothing to do in the second half.
"I was disappointed with the way we played in the first half. There was
too much high ball; too much long ball. I told them to play a shorter
passing game in the second half and they did that and a lot of the play
was in United’s half and we had a couple of chances which we didn’t
convert and then we got the equaliser and I thought we were the better
side but unfortunately there was that wee slip at the end and we were
punished.
"Even with not playing that well in the first half we had three
clear-cut chances but we didn’t take them. At this level we really have to
be taking those sorts of chances if you are going to come away with the
points. It’s going to turn; it will certainly turn. I’m happy with their
application and the way they are working; they’re training hard and so on.
It’s a matter of time. We need to start converting good performances into
wins.
"Obviously the League starts next Saturday and this is the big one and
they don’t get any harder when you are going to Windsor Park for your
first match in the Premier League.
"The lads are very down in the changing room. They worked so hard to
get back into the game, to get an equaliser and to be in charge of the
game for 45 minutes and then you make a mistake, so they’re very down and
quite rightly so but that game’s past now so we are going to start looking
forward to next Saturday and get us prepared for Windsor Park."
Tommy Wright
"The important thing was to get the win, it did come late but I thought
in the first half we played really well and should have been more than one
goal up. Second half we let them come back into it again but we battled to
the end and got our just rewards really.
100 CLUB LUNCH
The Glenavon FC Supporters' Fundraising Committee held its annual lunch for
'100 Club' members and shirt sponsors in the Broomhill prior to the game against
Ballymena United.
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'100 Club' committee members pictured with
Glenavon manager Jimmy Brown at the special lunch on Saturday |
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