Glentoran 4-0 Glenavon

Danske Bank Premiership

The Oval, Tuesday 28th January 2020

Match Report by Philip Hawthorne

Photos by Maynard Collins

Despite a fairly even start to this re-arranged Danske Bank Premiership game at The Oval, a defensive mix-up between Andy Doyle and Jonny Tuffey handed the Glens their opening goal on a plate. Paul O’Neill will never score an easier goal after Doyle nodded a ball into the box past Tuffey who, it seemed, had called for it and would simply collect it with no danger, instead the mix-up left the young striker the simple task of rolling the ball into the empty net from less than a yard out.

That goal came on 21 minutes just as Glenavon had begun to show a bit of composure with Sammy Clingan dictating the play in mid-field and the Lurgan Blues enjoying some decent possession without really testing Marijan Antolović in the home goal.

The half was seemingly coming to a close with Gary Hamilton no doubt ready with his half-time team talk when his side contrived to concede twice more in the final five minutes of the half. The defence seemed to be asleep as Joe Crowe rolled a quick free kick into the path of Navid Nasseri who was given the freedom of the Glenavon penalty box to stride onto the ball and fire low past the helpless Tuffey.

Robbie McDaid basically killed off the game with the last touch of the half when he glanced in a cross from Nasseri.

O’Neill put the icing on the cake for the Glens with his second goal of the game in the 61st minute to make the final score 4-0 and take Mick McDermott’s side back to the top of the table.

Glenavon now has until the home league game with Crusaders on February 8th to try to regroup and sort out the defensive frailties that have seen the side concede 65 goals this season. Only Warrenpoint and Dungannon have a worse defensive record.

Glentoran: Antolovic, Kane, Peers, Gallagher, Frazer, McDaid, McClean, Pepper, Nasseri, Crowe, O’Neill subs Morris, Herron, Allen (replaced Frazer 78′), Smith, Gordon (replaced Peers 67′), van Overbeek (replaced McDaid 65′), McGarvey

Goals: O’Neill 21′ 61′, Naserri 40′, McDaid 45′

Cautions: None

Glenavon: Tuffey, Larmour, Burns, Doyle, Daniels, Harmon, Clingan, Purkis, McCloskey, Singleton, Jenkins subs Byrne (replaced Jenkins 78′), Moorhouse (replaced McCloskey 67′), Barr, O’Mahony, Beggs, Hunter, Davidson (replaced Daniels 67′)

Goals: None

Cautions: Singleton 87′

Referee: Shane Andrews