Postponed due to a failed pitch inspection, the heavens opened last Saturday morning and left some surfaces around Northern Ireland drenched in water. Unfortunately, the downpour hit Glen Road Heights sufficiently sharply that it was deemed unsafe, and the call was made to delay it to this Saturday where it is hoped conditions will be more favourable – albeit the forecast indicates wet weather is still to be expected.
As Bangor brace for a delayed take two against Belfast Celtic in the Irish Cup third round this Saturday afternoon (1:30pm kick-off), they go in already with the knowledge of who their next foe in the competition will be should they prevail. Celtic will be hungry to answer back after the Seasiders eliminated them from the Steel and Sons Cup, and it promises to be a well-contested affair with not much margin for error.
It is quite the curiosity that on both occasions the two sides have been drawn against each other in separate cups this season, neither fixture has taken place on the initially-planned date. The first meet was put back owing to the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, while this bout has been re-scheduled due to a waterlogged playing surface.
The fourth round Irish Cup draw was made in mid-week, with the winner of this match bound for the northwest to face Limavady United next up.
The Roesiders were 0-1 winners at Woodvale last week, and will welcome one of these two to the Limavady Showgrounds on the 26th November. Should Bangor take the spoils in west Belfast, it will be a return to a stomping ground they have already tasted success at this term.
Ben Arthurs’ 11th-minute penalty – to date the only spot-kick the Yellows have been given across all competitions this campaign – was good enough for the three points in August, with a slender 0-1 success in the club’s first Premier Intermediate League away day of the season.
While it does not rank among the more popular trips in the calendar, a 150-mile-round escapade that leaves you with a feeling of emptiness if you do not come away with the victory, it would surely be taken over third-round elimination.
| Irish Cup (select results) | Fourth Round (29/10/22) | ||
| Ballymacash Rangers | 7 | 1 | Rosario Y.C. |
| Banbridge Town | P | P | East Belfast |
| Comber Rec | 0 | 2 | Dollingstown |
| Wakehurst | 1 | 5 | Moyola Park |
| Woodvale | 0 | 1 | Limavady United |
Belfast Celtic proved that they are a capable unit in the sides’ first meet in the Steel, with Arthurs and Adam Neale on the scoresheet in the second half to secure Bangor a 0-2 win on the 1st October.
The Clandeboye clan have since defeated Glentoran II to book their quarter-final date in the competition. That 0-3 success at Ashfield – the fourth win of five to make it a flawless 10th month of the year results-wise – has paved the way for a last-eight showdown with another team the club has got the better of in the past five weeks, as Albert Foundry await in a second trek to Paisley Park this term next Saturday.
The way the players acquitted themselves on that first visit to Celtic’s perched venue 34 days ago delighted boss Lee Feeney.
“I was really pleased and really proud of the performance, and we showed that we have more than one approach to our game,” he reflected in the aftermath to Neil Watson in the County Down Spectator at the time.
“I thought we were in total control and even when Belfast Celtic had a period of pressure, I was never worried. I knew we would score goals and it was just a case of being patient.”
Ex-Banbridge Rangers chief Feeney has been impressed by the professionalism with which his players have approached their fixtures this season. He will be keen to ensure these high standards, as well as the side’s signature defensive solidity, do not slip, with a big month of knock-out football on the horizon.
It will have been 11 days since Bangor last played by the time the chosen starting panel take to the turf amid what is hoped will be a clear and stunning backdrop. On the first visit, it was a serene autumn day, so crystal clear that the Mourne Mountains could be distantly observed.
“I was really pleased and really proud of the performance”
Lee Feeney after the first meeting of the sides in October
They claimed a hard-fought 2-0 win over a battling PSNI team at Clandeboye Park last Tuesday, despite a harsh torrent of rain making it far from a formality. Feeney stated afterwards that it was one of the most challenging outings of the season, given it took an hour to finally break down a stubborn Police rear-guard and the wet and windy weather made it tough for either team to control the climate on the pitch.
Adam Neale bulleted a ferocious drive into the back of the net for his sixth goal in five games since debuting for the Seasiders. He broke the deadlock on 60 minutes before Arthurs – who the Ballynahinch ace draws level with on a season-high five successive goalscoring appearances – doubled the lead on 85 minutes with his 85th goal for the club.
Owing to Neale’s appearance for Rathfriland against East Belfast in the Irish Cup first round, though, he is cup-tied and will not appear this Saturday.
The extra week will have at least provided some extra rehabilitation time in the wake of some recent injuries. Centre backs Ryley D’Sena and Ryan Arthur, each not long returned from non-distant absences, were interchangeably rotated in and out of the squad in October and will each surely have appreciated a bye-weekend to restore themselves to full fitness for the future run-in.
Jamie Glover rolled his ankle late into the Glentoran II bout a fortnight ago. The left-footed attacking midfielder did not play against PSNI and has been monitored closely since as he hopes to restore himself to a match-fit state, though he is not in contention to feature this weekend.
Meanwhile, Jordan Hughes has not featured since hobbling off early in the Intermediate Cup first round success at Foundry – where Glover assisted Michael Halliday’s extra-time winner, rewarding Bangor with a second date with Strabane Athletic this season on the 19th November – while the long-serving Ethan Boylan has been absent from six successive matchday squads due to injury as well. Ever-dependable vice-captain Reece Neale was substituted with a knock last time out, with Ally Ferguson and the recently-returned Gareth Beattie candidates to deputise if he is unavailable.
Feeney will want to have as many of his first-team regulars as possible match-fit in the next month. The Foundry and Strabane dates could be added to by a Steel semi-final at Seaview and the aforementioned fourth-round date in Limavady, making this a month dominated by knock-out fights where there are no second chances. League matches with Tobermore United and Moyola Park will be re-arranged, though a new date for either has not yet been confirmed.
| Premier Intermediate League | Matchday 7 (5/11/22) | |
| Ballymacash Rangers | v | Moyola Park |
| Lisburn Distillery | v | Armagh City |
| Portstewart | v | PSNI |
| Queen’s University | v | Limavady United |
It is always best to focus on the most immediate of priorities, however. That priority right now is to double-up on Celtic.
Should the Seasiders live up to the ‘favourites’ tag – not that Feeney will be requesting that the players rest on their laurels – then they would record a season-high sixth successive win.
With 14 goals scored and just one conceded in the previous five matches, albeit one that almost proved cruelly costly before Halliday’s decisive double-intervention at Foundry, the Yellows will also want to secure their 12th clean sheet in 15 matches.
One of those was in the first meet of the teams, and it will be interesting to see whether Celtic boss Stephen McAlorum adjusts his tactics or personnel based on what he witnessed first-hand last time.
A two-time Irish Cup winner with Glentoran and a favourite of nearby Donegal Celtic as well, former Glenavon trainee McAlorum may opt to deploy the energetic Brendan Glackin – a named substitute for Knockbreda in that wild-beyond-words relegation/promotion play-off battle at Clandeboye Park last season – from the start this time, having rather surprisingly deployed him as a substitute in the first outing.
He can count on the experience of a well-known Irish League line-leader in Darren Murray up top, while former Bangor duo Paul McLaughlin (on loan) and Dylan Snoddon may again figure to feature in the starting line-up.
In terms of form, Celtic were defeated 3-1 by Mid Ulster League outfit Valley Rangers in the Intermediate Cup first round, while Coagh United got the better of them 1-0 in the Ballymena and Provincial League. A fourth-tier outfit, who under their previous guise of Sport and Leisure Swifts had relegated the Seasiders from the third-tier into the table they now occupy in 2017, they must be taken with the respect they deserve.
On that occasion, Feeney gave them their dues by fielding his strongest available team. He is likely to be a few players short fitness-wise of the selection he will view as his most formidable, but there is still enough quality among his panel to be able to do a job.
How his thinking will have been influenced from that first game will also be reflected in how he lines his boys up.
There is intrigue about this match. For the Seasiders’ sake, they’ll hope to enter consummately and do the job with little drama – but it should not be bet on that it will be a cakewalk.
Meanwhile, while the senior team were put out of action last Saturday, the Reserves were out and playing as normal. In a tough match on paper against Warrenpoint Town Reserves, they remained grounded and fought to secure a 2-1 success at Clandeboye Park. The Point took the lead but Bangor bit back, with Charley Craig levelling and Scott Atchison turning the tide in the 90th minute to secure the spoils.
It means Davy Downes’ squad become the first team to take points from their adversaries, with the Seasiders pegging level with the border club on 12 points but remaining 3rd-place due to a marginally inferior goal difference. The Reserves face off this weekend against Clough Rangers in the Junior Shield second round (1:30pm), and there is a busy schedule on the horizon over the next two weeks with a league clash at home to Knockbreda and a Junior Cup third stage tie against Drumquin United close by.
Isaac Caldwell’s Under-18s had hoped to join the Under-20s in the revelry of victory, but their Harry Cavan Cup second round tie with Fivemiletown United was postponed. They now know that if they prevail over the Tyrone team, they will play Crusaders U18 in the third stage. Elsewhere, there were wins in the Academy for the Under-17s, who defeated Belfast Celtic’s equivalents 3-2, as well as the Under-15s (2-1 against Crumlin United) and Under-13 SBYL (3-2 versus Ridgeway Rovers) outfits last weekend.
In mid-week, the Under-14s atoned for a reverse against Glentoran with a win over Ards in a derby outing on Tuesday evening.
This week’s ’20 Questions’ sees midfielder Karl Devine come under the spotlight, as the ex-Dundela man’s team insights are shared with a wider audience.
Finally, Bangor Football Club were last night proud to be nominated in the ‘Commitment to the Bangor Community’ section of the Bangor Chamber of Commerce’s annual Business Awards.
Directors Graham Bailie, Jim Russell, Gerry Watson, Neil Watson, Simon Stuart, Patrick Cregg and Luke Neal were in attendance at the ceremony, and the whole club wishes to congratulate Alison Blayney from Kilcooley Women’s Centre on winning the category.
Featured image from Sarah Harkness.
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