SEPTEMBER 2006
30th September: MALONE CRITICAL OF BACK FOUR
Glenavon 1-2 Dungannon Swifts
After playing against the elements in the first half and going
into the interval at 0-0, Glenavon failed to take advantage of the wind at their
backs in the second half. In fact it was from a Glenavon free kick that
Dungannon broke to take the lead. It was glaringly obvious from the Press Box
that, if the ball broke kindly for the Swifts, David Scullion would have a free
run at Ross Black, the only Glenavon defender at the back; and so it was.
Montgomery nicked the ball off Aaron Black's head under the posts and Scullion
raced into the Glenavon half to slip the ball to Mark McAllister. The
Portadown-based striker slid the ball past Rice to give his side the lead with
his fourth goal of the season.
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| Aidan McVeigh lays the ball off |
Dungannon had the luxury of a
missed penalty from Rory Hamill, awarded when Atiba Charles brought down the
lively Scullion, before the former Glenavon player's close range left foot
finish from JP Gallagher's low cross made it two-nil.
Colin Malone had seconds earlier brought on Paul Walsh and
Nathan McConnell and the two combined in the 82nd minute with McConnell heading
the young winger's corner wide when well placed. The former Cliftonville striker
was unlucky two minutes later when his shot through a crowded area was cleared
off the line. Paul Walsh scored a peach of a goal, a great finish with the
outside of his left foot from the corner of the box, two minutes from time but
it was all too little too late for Glenavon.
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| Thomas Wray leaps above Marty Hunter
to head clear. |
Nathan McConnell thought he had grabbed a point for Glenavon when he nodded
Paul Walsh's cross past Nelson in injury time but his celebrations were cut
short by the offside flag.
Speaking after the match, Colin Malone was clearly unhappy with the
performance of his back four "The back line, in particular, were poor today
again. With the experience we have in it, it should have been a lot tighter and
a lot better than what it was."
LOTTERY WINNER
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| Mr Leslie Mathews (third from left)
with his Jackpot cheque |
Monday night's £2600 Lottery Jackpot prize was scooped by Banbridge man Mr
Leslie Mathews. Mr Mathews quipped "I'd rather have a Glenavon win!" when he was
presented with his winner's cheque by Chairman Roy Ferguson in the board room at
half time in the Dungannon Swifts match.
23rd September: BLUES BLOW LEAD
Ballymena Utd 4-2 Glenavon
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| Nathan McConnell's first goal for
Glenavon was the perfect start |
Glenavon stormed into a 2-0 lead inside the first twenty minutes then seemed
to take the foot off the pedal. Nathan McConnell opened his Glenavon account
when he stroked home Gerard McMahon’s excellent free kick in the fourth minute
and the former Northern Ireland international made it two himself when his shot
deflected off Nigel Boyd. It could easily have been 4-0 by that stage with
McConnell missing a great chance with a back post header from another McMahon
free kick and Paul Murphy doing well to keep out McVeigh's shot.
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| Gerard McMahon ran the show for
Glenavon |
Kevin Kelbie missed a penalty for Ballymena in the 30th minute and this
should have acted as a warning to the Glenavon side but it was not heeded and
Scates pulled a goal back seven minutes later when he glanced Darren Murphy's
cross in at the near post, the former Glenavon midfielder having exchanged
passes with Boyd on the left wing.
It all went horribly wrong for Glenavon in the second half with Murphy
grabbing the equaliser against his old team in the 67th minute after he was
allowed to turn onto his left foot inside the Glenavon box and lift a superb
chip over Rice into the top corner.
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| Colin Malone couldn't believe how
Glenavon let the lead slip |
Murphy turned provider five minutes later when Kelbie headed his free kick
past the exposed Rice from close range. With Glenavon now pressing for an
equaliser they were caught up field at their own free kick and Scates broke out,
played the ball out to Callaghan on the right and Rice then could only push his
cross into the path of Picking who bundled it over the line.
Glenavon's misery was compounded two minutes from time when Brian Mallon was
red-carded for a professional foul on Friel after he pulled him down just
outside the Glenavon penalty area. Gerard McMahon had also limped off earlier
with a pulled muscle after he appeared to catch his studs in the turf.
"I thought at the start we carried on where we left off last week. We opened
up brilliantly. At 2-0 it should have been three or four but we took the foot
off the pedal, stopped the engine and failed to get it started again. It should
have been done and dusted: what we saw in the first 20 minutes was absolutely
excellent. Great approach play, good goals, should have scored more, didn’t and
then took the foot off the pedal.
"It was criminal how we let them back into the game. We got a warning with
the penalty kick but we just couldn’t get back into the game after handing
Ballymena the initiative.
"It’s very, very disappointing and disheartening for everyone, supporters and
players alike; it’s back to Earth with a bump. Unfortunately the players thought
it was easy; they didn’t do the things that were basic. Last week we worked very
hard to get the ball back and we got in and made things happen; today we stood
off Ballymena. You can’t stand off anybody and all credit to Ballymena, they
seized upon the opportunity and raised their game from there on.
"Gerard McMahon did well; his free kicks were good but I can’t turn round and
say we lost because Gerard went off. There were still quality players on the
pitch that didn’t perform today. The performance in the second half was very
laid back and it was so disappointing following on from last week. To turn out
with such a poor, flat, second half performance was very disappointing."
16th September:
A WIN - AT LAST!
And what a win. "Linfield set the standard that everyone else is trying to
emulate and I thought today we were better than they were and that's credit to
the players" said a delighted Colin Malone after the match.
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| Paul Walsh runs towards the bench to
celebrate his winning goal |
The first chance of the game fell to Glenn Ferguson in the second minute but
he uncharacteristically put a header well wide from Ervin's cross after a great
run out of defence by O'Kane. Nathan McConnell almost directed McDonnell's cross
down for his strike partner Quinn but his header deflected off Douglas and went
into the grateful arms of Mannus. McConnell also had a shot deflected just wide
of the post as he spun and fired a low shot from the edge of the Linfield box.
Five minutes from the break saw Glenavon put together the best move of the
game so far when Quinn and Mallon played a one-two on the edge of the 'D' with
Mallon's rising shot just clearing the bar. Ciaran Quinn had the best chance of
the half as Hunter's back heel put Mallon clear down the left flank and his
cross spun off McConnell to fall kindly for the former UCD striker but his shot
lacked power and Mannus made a fairly comfortable save.
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| 'Spike' is tackled by Aaron Black |
Early in the second half Aidan O'Kane flashed a free kick right across the
Glenavon area which somehow eluded everyone and narrowly missed the far post.
Linfield took the lead rather against the run of play in the 57th minute when
Tim Mouncey stabbed home from close range as Glenn Ferguson nodded the ball down
after Brian Mallon's attempted clearance went straight up in the air. The
Glenavon players refused to let their heads drop, though, and minutes later Davy
Hawthorne went close with an overhead kick as Atiba Charles nodded the ball down
for him.
Surprise substitute Paul McKnight, in his first game back after a knee
operation, provided the quality cross in the 82nd minute for Charles to head in
at the back post, to the delight of the Glenavon faithful. The former Rangers
midfielder received the ball with his back to goal from McMahon's free kick and,
though he was forced away from the goals, he managed to lift a cross from the
bye-line to the back post where the big Trinidadian defender was waiting to
pounce.
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| Atiba Charles kept Spike quiet for
most of the game |
The Glenavon supporters were in raptures four minutes from time when young
Paul Walsh curled a superb 20 yard free kick past Mannus in the Linfield goal to
give Glenavon its first win of the season.
"Linfield set the standard that everyone else is trying to emulate and I
thought today we were better than they were and that's credit to the players"
said a delighted Colin Malone after the match.
"We did it the hard way: coming back from a goal down. It was important that
we didn't drop our heads today, and we didn't. The first half really set the
tone. We got stuck into them, to be perfectly blunt about it. If you stand off
Linfield and give them too much respect they'll destroy you. Today we weren't
going to let that happen and we gave as good as we got if not better.
"We never threw the towel in at any stage; even when they got their bizarre
goal. We still tried to get in behind them and at the end of the day we got our
just rewards. It wasn't a backs to the wall performance by any means; I think
that on the day the best team won.
"I can't praise the players high enough; they've worked very very hard. It's
easy for people to criticise when we're not winning. Hopefully we'll get a good
response from this. I'm sure everybody's going home today with good vibes and
knowing that we can put in a performance.
"Hopefully we've something to look forward to next week but we've got to keep
our feet firmly on the ground. We've only won one game and so we're not
expecting people to get carried away but maybe they'll look at us and say
'they're not a bad team; there is quality there' and on our day we are capable
of beating quality sides, which is what happened today. I'm hoping we can take
that confidence forward and emulate that kind of performance week in and week
out. It's all about consistency in the League."
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Atiba Charles: "Experience in the World
Cup teaches you never to give up no matter if you go a goal down. The
confidence of the players was much different today and I had no doubt
that we would at least pull back a goal but the win was even sweeter.
"He was tight on me you know and I feinted like I was going towards
the front post and I just went back a little bit and caught him off
guard. It was a superb ball in - couldn't be better."
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RESERVES WIN TOO
Glenavon Reserves echoed the result of the First team with a 2-1 victory over
Linfield Swifts. The Glenavon goals were scored by Neil Gawley and Marty Havern.
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Michael Renwick
Ex-Glenavon defender Michael Renwick has been appointed as first team coach
at Scottish 2nd Division Club, Cowdenbeath after finishing his playing career at
Stenhousemuir. One of his players is Iain Mauchlen, son of Ally Mauchlen, a
former Glenavon favourite who also played for Leeds United, Kilmarnock and
Motherwell.
9th September:
BLUES 0-1 WHITES
Glenavon lost again in the penultimate CIS Group match with Conor Hagan's
11th minute strike proving the difference in a dour match of precious few
chances. Match report
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| Atiba was impressive in the air |
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