Wakehurst v Lurgan Celtic
A superb through ball from Steven Gage on 20 minutes put Conor Gregg through but his attempted lob sailed harmlessly over the crossbar. It was end to end football and Dougie Stevenson came to his team’s rescue with a couple of timely interventions. Jason Paul was next to press the Celtic rearguard but after working a good opening his final pass went behind Jordan Kenny and in a quick counter attack, Celtic won a corner, which was eventually cleared by Ryan Gregg. Celtic continued to attack and forced a series of corners on the half-hour mark but again the Gage brothers, Stevenson and Colville were dominant and danger passed. Play switched to the other end and Jason Paul broke into the penalty box before being brought down by a combination of Fox and Murphy but the referee waved away Wakehurst’s appeals for a penalty and Jordan Kenny ended up being ‘booked’. Five minutes from the break a flowing move that started from McErlean’s intelligent throw out saw David Gage, Ryan Gregg and McCaughern exchange passes on the left flank but there was no-one on the end of McCaughern’s excellent cross. Then in the final minute, Stevenson’s well timed tackle won the ball from Danny Ryan, when the Celtic striker was bursting through the middle.
Manager Ian Gregg and Coach Darren Parker must have fired their team up during the interval and in the space of the opening 10 minutes of the second half, Wakehurst should have sealed the victory. The usually lethal Paul missed two great opportunities and when Kenny got on the end of another well delivered cross from McCaughern, his powerful header was pushed round the upright by the diving Fox – an outstanding save. Celtic manager Ciaran O’Kane introduced two substitutes on 55 and 65 minutes as he watched his team being over-run by a rampant home side but despite their total dominance they couldn’t add to their slender one goal lead. Celtic were left exposed at the back as they pushed more players forward in an attempt to snatch an equalizer and Wakehurst were slicing through this depleted rearguard with ease. It seemed only a matter of time before their lead was extended. With 15 minutes remaining, Wakehurst replaced the tiring Connor Gregg with Connor Warren. This was Gregg’s first game back after suffering an injury in the opening match of the season. The Wakehurst onslaught continued and they should have been awarded a penalty when the effervescent Kenny was hacked down well inside the box but again the referee’s inability to make a decision left the home team and officials mystified! And Kenny was out of luck twice more, heading over from Ryan Gregg’s cross, then chipping the ball over the keeper only to see Murphy clear off the line. Another McCaughern delivery found Paul unmarked at the edge of the box, but his weak shot was again cleared away by Murphy. With time running out Haire broke down the Wakehurst left and fired in a great shot, which McErlean beat away. Then as the game was going into added—on time, the inevitable happened. A hopeful long ball was allowed to run through to McErlean but his sliced clearance fell kindly to Celtic sub Andy Murnin, who couldn’t believe his luck as he stroked the ball into an empty net to give his side an undeserved share of the spoils. Cruel on Wakehurst but they only have themselves to blame, as their excellent approach play was wasted by a catalogue of missed opportunities as another two points were casually tossed away.
Team: McErlean, Colville, Gage (S), Stevenson, Gage (D), Gregg (C), McCaughern, Crawford (M), Gregg (R), Kenny, Paul.
Subs: Erwin, Warren, Culbertson, Alexander, Crawford (R)
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