Limavady United’s goal glut to start the Premier Intermediate League campaign has come under the spotlight – and not without reason.
The Roesiders have started the new third-tier campaign in an impressive vein; with just six matches played, they have already scored an astonishing 28 goals, scooping up 15 out of a possible 18 points that were up for grabs.
To contextualise such a blitz, they netted 47 throughout the 27-game entirety of last campaign, while all but the division’s top four in 2022/23 hit fewer than 40 finishes.
The solitary chink in their armour so far came courtesy of Warrenpoint Town, who bagged a last-gasp winner at their Milltown home to edge out the visitors by the odd goal in five. Barring that, though, Limavady have swept aside all in their wake.
The Lims laid down the gauntlet in their league opener, thrashing Banbridge Town 9-1 at the Rathmore Road Showgrounds to stylishly follow up an initial 6-1 victory in the BetMcLean Cup Preliminary Round against Tobermore United at the same venue.
Thereafter, a 7-1 defeat of Dollingstown at Planters Park preceded the second time already that they’ve hit Tobermore for six – in the PIL, this time – before clean-sheet successes over their fellow regional rivals Portstewart and Moyola Park by slightly tamer 3-0 and 1-0 scorelines ensure their position at the top of the third-tier table at the time of writing.
To add to that, they were also the sole unseeded side to advance to the last-16 of this year’s BetMcLean Cup, turning over Dundela thanks to Ruairi Boorman and Joe McCready strikes either side of half-time.
Progression to Round Four of the Irish Cup, where they travel to Intermediate Cup holders Crumlin Star, and with a North West Senior Cup showpiece to look forward to as well as an upcoming Craig Memorial Cup semi-final against Desertmartin on the cards, has Paul Owens’ men flying high indeed.
In the former Coleraine assistant’s first full season of his second stint in charge, he has locked down his preferred ball-playing brand of football and is letting his team exact it.
It’s working to devastating effect thus far.
When Limavady finished fourth-place last campaign and news of Warrenpoint’s administrative demotion from the Championship was confirmed, it felt as if they were flying a bit under the radar when the promotion discussion intensified.
After all, with Lisburn-based play-off representatives Ballymacash Rangers snapping up the talented Benny Igiehon from Portadown and former Newington sharpshooter Gary Warwick, and third-placed Queen’s University securing the stunning, statement loan capture of fleet-footed forward Stewart Nixon from Carrick Rangers, the PIL had been hit with a new wave of talent at the top end.
But Owens wasn’t to let his blue-shirted charges be left behind.
Forward McCready linked up from Dungannon Swifts, long-serving Coleraine hero Ian Parkhill signed from Moyola Park and seasoned Graham Crown, also ex of Oran Kearney’s Bannsiders, added steel in defence.
When you add the mesh of experience and quality they provide to a young and hungry panel that also comprises line-leading PIL Player of the Year nominee Alex Pomeroy, the effects tend to rub off.
And they certainly have – although the extent to which they have rubbed might have shocked even the most optimistic of Lims supporters so far.
Talismanic Parkhill, who struck 10 goals in his first half a dozen games after switching from Moyola – that included a couple of hat-tricks – has taken a centre-stage role once more, as has 14-goal former Ballymena United and Institute ace McCready. Pomeroy likewise is into double digits, with 10 finishes to date, and that speaks volumes about the array of creative impetus around such a red-hot strikeforce.
Highly-rated midfielder Lewis Tosh was brought back for another season-long from Coleraine, such was Owens’ satisfaction with his efforts, while fellow young guns Aaron McLaughlin, Luca Doherty and Boorman brothers Tiarnan and Ruairi also offer impetus from across the pitch and support Limavady’s attacking efforts.
And although a late promotion push that was threatened did not quite materialise into the real thing, the value of those six months in charge last term have worked to Owens’ gain.
Where the promotion race could ultimately be decided, though, is in clashes against those that are projected to be around them.
Limavady will play Queen’s in a crunch encounter at The Dub in mid-November, and their final duel of this calendar year is at The Bluebell to take Ballymacash head-on.
Successive home dates with The ‘Cash and Warrenpoint in February will test their mettle again, as will Queen’s at the start of April – notwithstanding the many other tussles they will face in a league where, if you are a top dog, you will be asked real questions of breaking down defensive blocks.
But you could not make any argument of unpreparedness.
Surely when you have got those six months in charge plus the summer off-season to build up to the next campaign, that time to implement your methods and make sure your players know them like the back of their hands, it will stand to you when you do, so to speak, start from the start.
Owens, who won a treble of Intermediate Cup, Craig Memorial Cup and PIL in 2017 as player-manager, has worked hard to make sure of a front-footed start like this, and the Showgrounds side certainly illustrate that work in progress.
The faithful will hope this positive opening materialises into something even greater.
Featured image from Limavady United FC Social Media.
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