It is a return to Premier Intermediate League action for Bangor this weekend, as an uninterrupted 15-game league sprint begins on Saturday with a trip to Armagh City. An opponent the Seasiders have already defeated once this season, a league double over the Eagles would mark a welcome return to winning ways having lost the last third-tier outing at Tobermore United two weeks ago.
There is heart and encouragement to be taken from how the players acquitted themselves in last Friday night’s Irish Cup sixth round encounter with Crusaders, particularly in the second half when the home side stormed back into the tie at Clandeboye Park, and there is hope going into this duel that the way the yellow-shirted charges made Crues nerves jangle can form the crest of a new wave. It promises not to be a simple task, however.
Bangor’s first meeting with Armagh City came in early October, and the result on that day reflected the respective formbooks.
Jamie Glover’s deadlock-breaker at the first half’s mid-point was followed by a 26-minute splurge in the second period. Dynamic defender David Hume doubled the lead 10 minutes after the interval before Adam Neale struck a brace, his finishes enveloping his younger sibling Reece as he too made the scoresheet, which made for a dominant 5-0 victory.
Now, though, the feel in the air is slightly different. Having made some shrewd winter dealings, including two prominent loans in the form of returning striker supreme Conor Mullen and promising Dungannon Swifts youngster James Convie, the increased firepower has been reflected in Armagh’s recent results – albeit wins have proved elusive.
The Holm Park outfit have struck nine goals in their last five PIL matches. 20-year-old Convie, who has netted in the Premiership for the Swifts, comes in having delivered three in his last four, while Mullen – who netted five times in the Championship prior to returning – is off the mark too.
Despite their recent upturn in attack, though, they are winless in their last nine in the league and sit 11th-place.
Picking up four points in that span, they know their flower will have bloomed once they take home a three-point haul that it feels like they’ve been threatening.
Denied away successes at Tobermore United and Ballymacash Rangers due to added-time equalisers having earlier established multi-goal leads, while themselves clawing back a two-goal deficit to claim a point at home against Moyola Park, they can be counted a little unlucky.
But, with inspiration to be derived, and creator-in-chief Marc McConnell back orchestrating, Shea Campbell’s men will be chomping at the bit to add their third league win of this term.
Lee Feeney will not be taking any chances given the spirit the opposition have shown to begin the new year.
Bangor’s 2-0 reverse at Fortwilliam Park 13 days ago was frustrating for fans in attendance, given the visitors enjoyed healthy chance-creating spells at the start of either half without being able to cap it off with a flourish.
It is no big concern in isolation, though, should the Seagulls be able to swoop in and hoist three points away from the Ballynahonemore Road.
“We slipped up at Tobermore a couple of weeks ago and I know the boys are busting to put that right”
Lee Feeney
Being their first league defeat in their 12th league match, it has still been a start that has put the Clandeboye clan in good stead but it would be for the best if slip-ups are few and far between with plenty of points to be won and lost.
And with a competitive second-half account as the Hatchetmen of north Belfast visited for a UK-wide television audience to see, there is hope that this – capped off by Ben Arthurs’ deficit-cutter for his sixth goal in his last seven fixtures – spurs the Yellows on with no further cup distractions beckoning.
“I’m confident (going into Armagh City at Holm Park), even the conversation that we were having afterwards, it was straight into Armagh next Saturday,” emphasised Kilkeel supremo Feeney following last Friday’s spirited display.
“To be honest I haven’t even looked at the table, I don’t know what the make-up of the league is and won’t even really look at it until March time which I did last year. I think you’ve just got to focus on it game by game. But tonight I think will give us a lift going forward.”
The former Linfield and Rangers ace has been keen to keep his troops as level-headed as possible with each of the division’s top three facing tricky road assignments this Saturday.
| Premier Intermediate | 11/2/23 | |
| Armagh City | v | Bangor |
| Limavady United | v | Ballymacash Rangers |
| Lisburn Distillery | v | Dollingstown |
| Moyola Park | v | Queen’s University |
| Portstewart | v | Banbridge Town |
| PSNI | v | Tobermore United |
Games with Armagh have tended to be both pulsating and eventful, and a better blend of the two could not have been matched than the final day of last season when a winner-takes-all shoot-out for a promotion play-off place delivered a befitting climax courtesy of Arthurs’ late brace for a 3-1 Bangor win.
The earlier showdown at Clandeboye Park that campaign produced the once-in-a-blue-moon scene of Michael Halliday, who had initially opened the scoring, doing 55 minutes in goal in an eventual 1-3 home defeat. The first meeting of the clubs following the Seasiders’ return to the Irish League lives in the memory for being a breathtaking nine-goal thriller, where Bangor prevailed 3-6 on Holm Park’s artificial surface.
Now, with the hosts having scored and conceded in each of their last six games in all competitions, including in the Intermediate Cup when they conquered Portstewart on a long traverse to Mullaghacall, it could be more of the same.
“I’m confident, even the conversation that we were having afterwards (last Friday), it was straight into Armagh next Saturday”
Lee Feeney
Feeney will hope to have Adam Neale fit and firing. The Ballynahinch frontman, having not featured in the first XI for only one of the last five fixtures, will be all too keen to come back refreshed against the team he made his first league start against in yellow and blue.
The 29-year-old requires just one more to enter double-digits for goals in the PIL, becoming the first in the side to do so and the fourth overall. A second Arthurs hat-trick of the season would equally propel the Kircubbin line-leader to that tally, and would exceed his entire finishing total from last term.
With young livewires Scott McArthur and Jamie Glover putting in tenacious shifts last time and ex-Dundela line-leader Jordan Hughes returning to form, Feeney can call on a plentiful array of attacking impetus – not mentioning the evergreen Halliday, who last found the net against Queen’s at the start of December and who is equally fit and available.
Similarly, a sturdiness at the back has also been a vital pillar behind the first six months of this crusade. Upholding that on Saturday will again be important, and Feeney, who described defender John Boyle as having a “question mark” as regards his availability after hobbling off before half time in the Crues duel, will hope the Warrenpoint star is at his disposal to bolster the Seasiders rear-guard.
“We slipped up at Tobermore a couple of weeks ago and I know the boys are busting to put that right,” the Clandeboye chief added this week to Neil Watson in the County Down Spectator.
“I will look to freshen things up a bit as there are boys in the squad who are deserving of their chance.
“The boys know that everyone in the team needs to be on top form to keep their place because we have so much strength in depth. It’s now up to those who get the chance to show why they should keep their place.”
As referenced earlier, Armagh pack a punch up top in more ways than one.
Mullen, who converted a free kick beyond Halliday on that bizarre December 2021 outing and more recently struck for Annagh United to eliminate Bangor from the League Cup last September, has known qualities in this league after he and gifted winger McConnell were named to the last PIL Team of the Season.
There is also fellow marksman Stefan Lavery up top, who scored a penalty on that aforementioned final day decider. The captain delivered the second goal of the game when Armagh saw off Banbridge Town 2-0, with both strikes coming in the first eight minutes of what, entering Saturday, is their only home win in league play. How keen Campbell will be to set that record straight as the Eagles seek to mount their push up the table.
And having been joined by Convie at the top of the scoring tree with three, and with one further against the Seahawks in that Intermediate third-round joust, the striker will likewise surely be brimming with confidence. McConnell, who is still working his way back among the goals, has resembled his best self more in recent times, including the winner at Seahaven.
“It’s out of the way, it’s all league now, 15 more league games to go and we can put all the focus on winning our games and getting promoted”
Ryan Arthur, following last Friday’s defeat to Crusaders in the Irish Cup
Out of Lavery, Mullen, Convie and McConnell, the quality is there that tells you why this was the third-best team in the league last time.
This is forecast to be a tricky assignment for the Seasiders, but the players need no reminding of the skills they possess either. Especially in light of last week, and the standards shown up to this point.
The three points would be well-earned for the winner.
Meanwhile, Bangor Reserves are in action this Friday night, when they travel to Valley Leisure Centre to face Newington’s equivalents.
The second string enter hopeful of atoning last week’s 3-2 reverse away to Loughgall Reserves, and will leapfrog the ‘Ton – an opponent they are duelling with for the fourth time, winning two of the three previous jousts – into second-place at minimum.
With Ballymacash Rangers Reserves visiting Knockbreda simultaneously, a defeat for the west Lisburn club combined with Seasiders success would even propel Davy Downes’ unit into top spot in the league. Kick-off is at 7:45pm.
Bangor FC club officials were grateful to accept the invitation of North Down MLA and DUP Assembly Spokesperson for Sport, Stephen Dunne, to the Parliament Buildings to celebrate Christmas Eve’s Steel and Sons Cup success.
Club representatives were given a tour of the historic building and attended a reception held by Mr Dunne, who sponsored the ball for the Irish Cup fifth round match against Tandragee Rovers, to honour the occasion.
Featured image from Sarah Harkness.
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