Warrenpoint Town 1

Glenavon 2

Glenavon moved up to sixth place in the Dankse Bank Premiership table with a 2-1 win over Warrenpoint Town.

Conor McCloskey and Danny Purkis found the net after Alan O’Sullivan had put the Point ahead.

Glenavon made two changes from Monday night’s line-up, with Conor McCloskey and Sean Ward coming back into the starting line-up with Peter Campbell and Michael O’Connor missing out through injury.

Warrenpoint sounded a warning signal on three minutes when Fra McCaffrey had a header plucked out of the air by Jonny Tuffey.

And the hosts went in front two minutes later when McCaffrey flicked the ball back to O’Sullivan, who finished cooly from the edge of the box, beating Tuffey with his low drive. To give Warrenpoint credit, it was the best move of an otherwise flat first half.

Just before the half hour mark the Town could have had a second when a Steven Ball free kick was parried away by Tuffey at his near post. Andrew Doyle cleared the danger.

Later O’Sullivan headed over from a Kealan Dillon corner, while at the other end Matthew Fitzpatrick had a claim for a penalty turned away by referee Christopher Morrison.

Glenavon looked like they were going to head into the break behind, however with two minutes until the interval the visitors pulled level. Danny Purkis crossed the ball from the right hand side of the box, with Conor McCloskey on hand to tap the ball in from six yards out.

McCloskey could have had a second in first half stoppage time, but he headed Sean Ward’s cross from the right wing wide of the target.

That man McCloskey was involved again as Glenavon took the lead on 51 minutes. He slipped a free kick in to Purkis, who scored with a fantastic finish with the aid of the far post with the shot going low across Andy Coleman.

Then McCloskey almost made it 3-1, Matthew Snoddy finding the winger on the left who pivoted and shot, forcing a great save out of Andy Coleman.

Garrett had an opportunity as well on 67 minutes which went wide of the mark, and then on 73 minutes Purkis was unlucky not to score what could have been a goal-of-the season contender. He did the hard work, staying on side, timing his run to perfection and putting a defender on his backside but the striker skewed his effort wide of the near post.

A dominant second half performance was almost capped off in the 90th minute when Purkis found himself one-on-one with Coleman grounded but he couldn’t get a shot away.

Glenavon were reduced to 10 men when Conor McCloskey was bizarrely sent off for two yellow cards for diving,with neither incident looking like they warranted yellow cards. 

Images and post-match interviews to follow.

Warrenpoint Town: Coleman, Deasy, Ball, Peers, McVeigh, Dillon, O’Sullivan, McCaffrey. Swan, Hutchinson, Wallace. Subs: McMullan, O’Connor, Gallagher (Peers 49), Carroll (O’Sullivan 68), Mullen, Knox, Carson (Deasy 30).

GOALS: O’Sullivan 5

BOOKINGS: O’Sullivan 62

Glenavon: Tuffey, Larmour, Doyle, Purkis, Snoddy, Fitzpatrick, McCloskey, O’Mahony, Singleton, Garrett, Ward. Subs: Coates, Byrne (O’Mahony 83), Jenkins (Fitzpatrick 77), Clingan (Garrett 74), Norton, Taylor, Rea.

GOALS: McCloskey 43, Purkis 51

BOOKINGS: Fitzpatrick 72, McCloskey 80, 90, Snoddy 89

Referee: Christopher Morrison