Date: 23 Feb 2002
Glenavon 0 – Newry Town 1
Irish League Premier Division
Report by Sean, Newry

On a cold and extremely windy day in Lurgan it was the Newry team rather than the weather that gave Glenavon the "blues". This was a competent team performance from a Newry eleven and, but for some poor finishing, Newry would have won much more comprehensively. As early as the seventh minute David Ward was faced with only the Glenavon goalkeeper to beat but tamely shot at the keeper instead of drilling the ball into the net. If David was a clinical finisher, his goal tally would be much bigger – though young Conor Larkin, playing for Glenavon – had a very impressive game and restricted Ward to this one opportunity in the first half. Newry dominated the first half and were unlucky when a well placed header struck Rice the Glenavon keeper on the head – it could just as easily have entered the net. On loan defender Shevlin from Bohemians was having a Trojan game alongside Gavin Dykes, while Lee Anderson was as solid as the proverbial rock at right back and Glenn Downey was having his best game in a Newry town shirt. Davy O’Hare didn’t have a lot to contend with but he was competent and decisive when called into action The main cause of consternation in the first half was referee Adrian McCourt who made some inexplicable decisions and certainly angered and bemused the small contingent of Newry supporters on the away side. He "yellow carded" four Newry players for totally innocuous tackles and repeatedly penalised Newry with some unbelievably poor decisions.

Just after the interval Raymond Byrne, having a very solid game until then, was substituted - being replaced by Jonny Topley who cannot be faulted for his lack of effort when he came on.. The second half was again dominated by the Newry team and it was no surprise when Gareth Fulton scored after Rice had made a good save from from David Irwin. Barry Meehan battled bravely up front along with on loan forward Webb from Bohemians. David Ward missed another relatively easy chance in the closing stages and Glenavon could have stolen a point in the final minute but for a brilliant interception by Downey. In conclusion this was a solid performance from a Newry team which will confidently face Linfield in their next match. Best wishes to Alfie Wylie who missed the match due to a bout of flu – apparently he was in touch with Alex Denver by mobile phone. Perhaps this is the secret formula for success that Newry have been looking for all season!

Goals: Fulton

Newry Team: O’Hare 7, Anderson 7, Downey 7, Shevlin 8, Dykes 8, Byrne 6, Irwin 7, Fulton 8, Ward 6, Meehan 7, Webb 6. Subs: Topley 7, Arthur 6.

Goal: Meehan

Anyone who goes to watch the Town will know them. They're the people you meet after the match who want to know how Newry did. Always interested in the score, how the game was. Of course they'd never even think of going along to see their local team. Why would they when they can watch English football in the pub and anyway, Newry are crap. Who wants to be associated with a team that doesn't win every week apart from a couple of hundred mugs like ourselves. Of course some of them did used to go. It was ok when we were doing well in the InterToto Cup but they 'kind of lost interest somewhere along the line'. Oh yeah, why was that then? '4-1, they snigger, Newry are crap.' Try explaining that the score in no way reflects the entertaining game of football you've been to see and then see the look you get. Well I have to say that the scoreline was a joke. A bit like some of Newry's defending in fact. We've all seen appalling displays by the Town but I have to say that this wasn't one of them. When we lost by the same score to Glenavon last Christmas the scoreline didn't reflect the play: no, at one point I thought Glenavon might get into double figures. This, however, was something different. In the first half Newry dominated an unusually open game and created more clearcut chances than they usually carve out in 2 full games. And they did so by playing some lovely football. And yet they found themselves 3-0 down. Where they unlucky? No, it's not bad luck to miss 4 gilt-edged, and I mean gilt edged, chances; it's terrible finishing. First Ward did brilliantly to get through but shot straight at the keeper and then Evans was clean through but, unbelievably, elected to pass and the danger was cleared. Coleraine weren't in the game and yet from their first foray into the Newry half a free kick was headed into his own net by Cowan. Coleraine then went 2 up when Armstrong scored despite looking to be offside when he received the ball. Still Newry were doing well, at least going forward. Ward broke through and was completely clear of all defenders. The Coleraine keeper committed but Ward somehow managed to fire wide. An unbelievable miss. Arthur then headed over when unmarked in front of goal and a handball appeal was turned down inside the Coleraine box. Oh and then a speculative ball into the Newry box was finished by McCoosh as the defence stood and watched. Before half time Graeme Arthur fired home from a Fulton cross but as Newry pressed the half time whistle came in time for the visitors. Newry started the 2nd half brightly as Coleraine closed down the game and adopted a 'what we have we hold' attitude. With so many Coleraine men behind the ball Newry couldn't open them up as in the 1st half but they battled hard and created pressure and chances. Arthur and O'Connor both went close but gradually the game petered out. Dykes was pushed forward and as Newry were exposed at the back Coleraine broke forward in the last few minutes. First O'Hare saved but then conceded a penalty. He got up to save it but Beatty knocked home the rebound as the Newry defenders watched. Surely he could of expected better protection than that? And so it finished 4-1 to the visitors and I for one left the ground scratching my head. What was most frustrating was that Newry played so well to create their chances but blew them and Coleraine didn't even have to work for their 3 first half goals. Often you see the Town defence under concerted pressure and generally they do well but this was incredible. Perhaps it was the fact that they were seeing so little of the ball at the back that they forgot they were meant to defend. I read in the press Coleraine's Beatty bemoaning how people wrote them off for the title after they lost 7-1 to Linfield. On the day, he claimed, Linfield had taken every one of their chances whereas Coleraine had missed theirs. I imagine the irony would be lost on him but I think I know how he feels. 

I didn't get to a computer to write this report until one week after the match. Probably for the best. I wasn't in the best of moods after this. Oh, I was all set to tell you, my beloved readers, that one of the reasons people have lost interest in Irish League football is the appalling state of refereeing. And it is, along with poor facilities, the atmosphere at some grounds, the standard of play. Well, our new stnad is great, the atmosphere was muted but pretty supportive for the Town, and the standard wasn't great to be honest. So back to the referee. Well, the Town had battled well to lead Glenavon with the clock ticking towards the end of the match. Glenavon had plenty of the ball but as one of their supporters admitted to me, were never going to score. Step forward Leslie Irvine with, even by Irish League standards, one of the worst decisions I've seen in a long time. A great tackle by Seamus Kane cleared the ball, and the Glenavon forward threw himself to the ground after the ball had gone. Penalty! It wasn't even as if Irvine was that far away from play as is the case with most of our pudgy referees. Seeing the "challenge" three times on TV, it didn't get any better...the decision that is, not the challenge. But there you go, these things even themselves out over a season. Do they? If you follow the Town regularly you'll laugh at that particular suggestion. I could on but I'd only annoy myself. On the night, the team battled hard and Lee Anderson was outstanding and a clear man of the match. Davy O'Hare too ensured that some sense of order was restored with a magnificent save as Glenavon almost stole it late on. Now if that had happened....

So this is why they have that cliche about a game of two halves. If you'd asked me (and probably most others) at half-time on Saturday why we turn up to watch the Town I'd have had to think about it. I'm a masochist, I like embarrassing situations, I really should get another past-time? Forty five minutes later I had a different answer. The first half performance by Newry was that bad. You can take your pick of adjectives; shambolic, awful, and yes, embarrassing. A limited Crusaders side were all over Newry and even Peter Gilgunn (yes him) was looking the part for them. Newry never started and were lucky to be nil. Campbell and Magill had the Crues 2 up and they hadn't had to be anything special to do it. If there was a Newry effort on goal I missed it. It can't be easy for the Newry team with players leaving and apparently all but O'Hare and Casey up for sale. So much for a settled side? Still, the very least we expect is a bit of heart and fight and it was sorely missing in this half. The home support were moaning even more than usual and you couldn't see any way out of it, we were going to be humiliated by the bottom team in the league. And then when things couldn't get any worse the team redeemed themselves with a tremendous fightback in the 2nd half. Changes were made and John Martin certainly gave the Town more width and attacking threat. Suddenly they were transformed and Crusaders were on the back foot. It was all about fight and effort as Newry pressed to get into the game. In truth we know our limitatons and it wasn't always pretty but now we were getting stuck in and the result was obvious. Good pressure finally resulted in a first Newry goal after the move of the match. Irwin found Martin with a fine pass, he sped past Gilgunn and his cross was superbly volleyed home by Paul Evans. Game on. Newry pressed and but for one effort the Crues were on the defensive. Evans, Topley and Gardner (one of three more new players on the day) all went close. And still it seemed that the equaliser wouldn't come. Despite their efforts Dykes header being saved in the last few minutes seemed to confirm that Newry had given themselves just too much to do. And then in injury time a Newry corner was headed home by Lee Anderson to the delight of the home support. Anderson again had done the business as in the last game with Cliftonville. The goal was a sickening blow for the Crues but we've been there ourselves, against them, in recent years. They would have been obviously disappointed but it hardly excused the actions of their veteran (i.e. past it) centre back on the final whistle. And so Newry had got out of jail with their 2nd half performance. Play with as much application for 90 minutes in the upcoming home games against Glenavon and Ards and 6 points are there for the taking. Lapse into the awful mode of Saturday's first half and we'll get nothing. I suppose we just don't know what to expect but as ever I'm an optimist. Which is probably why I keep going along. Oh and dramatic last minute equalisers help too!

Newry finally got their first league win of the season courtesy of a battling display against highly touted Coleraine. The game was moved to a Friday night which resulted in a bigger home crowd (although still room for improvement there) and the new stand (although not yet in use) looked great under the floodlights. Coleraine boss Marty Quinn had told us through the press that his team were playing well without getting the results they deserved. They were due a win and he expected it to come against Newry. But the home side had put in some fair performances too without gaining an elusive win and it was they who would break their run on the night. The first half was pretty even with both sides having chances although defences were generally on top. Then just before the break new signing Anthony did well and crossed for Casey to head back across goal where Andrew Morrow raced in to finish to the net. Could Newry build upon this lead in the 2nd half as they'd failed to in their two previous matches? It looked like they could when John Martin seized on a defensive error early in the 2nd half to put the Town 2 up. The home support were ecstatic but we should know that we rarely do things the easy way. Within a minute a free header for Gaston from a corner put Coleraine right back in it and they visibly grew in confidence. Still 35 minutes to go: here we go again? Newry, however, defended pretty well as the game progressed although getting a little deep at times. Dykes and Anderson might not be pretty but they are effective and they provided a tough barrier for the away side to break down. The closest Coleraine came was when Tolan hit the post with O'Hare beaten. The Newry keeper made some decent saves too and as the game wore on we began to believe that the victory might be secured. Newry were creating some chances themselves on the break without taking them but were being willed home by an appreciative home support. Then with 4 minutes to go sub Irwin headed home from a Lyttle cross and the three points were secure. A fine win was secured by a Newry side that battled hard and got what they deserved. They've played better and lost but workrate alone warranted the points. The team left the field to rapturous applause from the supporters who surely hoped that this fine night could be built upon. Great stuff.
Goals: Morrow, Martin, Irwin 

Newry's poor run of results continued against an Ards team with strong Newry connections. Our former chairman, director of football (whatever that is) and a host of former players returned to the Showgrounds and stole a narrow victory. As in the previous home game with Glenavon, Newry handed the initiative to the visitors by crawling out of the blocks. Another early goal conceded left us chasing the game and unlike the Glenavon game an improved 2nd half performance didn't bring any rewards this time. It's hard to know why we can't actually start a game strongly, particularly at home, and end up chasing games. It suited Ards down to the ground. Indeed in 5 games this season Newry have conceded the first goal every time: result 2 draws and no wins. Ards could have been three up inside ten minutes. Their goal when it came was the result of a long throw that bobbled about and seemed to go into the net off a Town player. Newry hadn't started playing and yet could have been level when Ards keeper Inglis fluffed a clearance. Dickson hesitated when faced with an open goal and an Ards defender blocked. As the game settled down Ards limitations were obvious. They had their lead and they would sit on it while outmuscling this small Town team around the middle of the park. Unfortunatley our limitations were clear too! Confidence shaken we tried to pass it around but more often that not hit long balls which were gobbled up the Ards defenders. Losing our two main attacking weapons to injury, Evans and Martin, made the task of getting back into the game even more difficult. Newry improved in the 2nd half. Sub Robert Casey, while not match fit, at least gave a physical presence up front. Still chances went begging and the game got stretched. Ards employed a clever form of gamesmanship to break up any Newry momentum with a series of "injuries" killing the game. Former Newry man McLean certainly was hurt and had to leave the felt but the less said about the others the better. Ards could have sealed the game on the break near the end as Newry committed forward and were left exposed at the back. One ball through was enough to open us up at this stage. Are we Germany in disguise? Newry had to work harder for openings against a packed Ards defence but they did come. Amazingly we passed up three absolute sitters in the last few moments. How Gerard Lyttle managed to slide his shot wide is a mystery. Casey and Dickson then contrived to miss when a goal looked certain. And so it ended in a most disappointing 1-0 defeat. Ards were just that little bit cuter and won a poor game. A poor game watched by a pitiful crowd. Apparently it was Ards decision not to allow the game to be moved to the Friday night. Whatever the reason for this it was never going to be able to compete with Ireland v Holland on the tv. And to be honest, how would you try telling those who chose the tv option that they missed something here? As he left the field Trevor Anderson made his joy known to the Newry fans and gestured to the few home fans who remained. Very sad indeed. It's probably unfortunate that players and officials leave the field where they do as it seems to attract unnecessary incidents that do us no favours at all. In this case, however, Anderson should really know better. Worse still was the reaction of referee Frankie Hiles. He was in no way responsible for Newry's defeat and why someone felt the need to comment to him is not clear. However, for Hiles to react is unbelievable. This man is supposed to be the referee. It was probably an appropriate end to the afternoon's proceedings.

Another season kicked off with Newry's opener a difficult away game at Windsor against last seasons champions. Most outsiders would have had this one down as a home win but it didn't turn out that way. After taking my seat in the fine Windsor stand, the first thing to do was to look around the pitch and check out who was playing for the Town. As has been for the case for a number of seasons this teamsheet showed wholesale changes from last seasons outfit. Gone are practically all the southern based players and a number of promising young players have been added to the ranks. The match itself took a while to get into gear and with Dykes and Byrne looking solid at the back there were few real scares for the Town. Linfield did have the better of the first half but the closest they came was when a speculative shot come cross hit Davy O'Hare's post and when Dykes blocked Larmour's goalbound effort. A half time score of 0-0 left the Newry camp reasonably happy. The second half began in disastrous fashion for Newry as the ever dangerous Picking fired home to spark delight among the Blue ranks. Newry however steadied themselves and began to impose themselves on the game. Substitute Irwin robbed Murphy on the edge of the box but shot wide. Newry's big chance of an equaliser had gone, or so we thought. In fact the Town were playing well and passing the ball quite well. Naturally then the goal when it did come was the result of a long ball into the Linfield box! Murphy and co. had mopped up anything in the air all afternoon against the small Newry forwards but this time a Newry man got a nod on and John Martin spectaculalry crashed the ball to the net. Cue joy in the Newry stand. There were still 15 minutes left and we waited for the Linfield onslaught. Instead it was Newry who continued to press against an increasingly nervous home rearguard. Sub Topley brought two good saves out of Robinson and from the rebound of one of these Dickson almost stole a winner. Then with minutes on the clock the Blues broke away and Larmour was clean through. He slipped it past O'Hare as just as the home ranks prepared to celebrate a dramatic winner the cheers were cut short as the ball rebounded off a post. It therefore ended 1-1 in a game Newry could of won but just as easily could of lost. It was more importantly a good display by the Town team. Good performances are built on skill, hard work and, importantly, confidence and this result should certainly help in the latter department. Of course we've been here before and things can quickly go pear shaped but this was a good base on which to build. The Town defence was well marshalled by Byrne and Dykes who look a promising partnership; the midfield and forwards worked hard and the returning Paul Evans in particular had a good game. After the dreadful performances at the end of last season this was much more like it from Alfie's team.

Although there were only four survivors in the team that beat Linfield 3-1 last season at Windsor
Park, Newry still produced an excellent performance at Windsor Park and earned a very creditable
draw. In a rather dull first half in which very few chances were created, Linfield threw everything at
Newry but the central defence wasn't letting anything past them. With Dykes marshalling the defence
as usual and Raymond Byrne having a solid match, they proved too much for Spike and Co.  The
highlight of the first half was a magnificent goalmouth clearance from 'never say die' Dykes when a
Davy Larmour shot seemed destined for the Newry net.
Two minutes after the restart Linfield's new signing, Mark Picking, got off the mark for the new
season with a low shot from 20 yards out, which proved too much for Davy O'Hare. This
paradoxically started Newry's revival.  Alfie Wylie made some influential substitutions, which
resulted in turning the game around. Newry started to look bright and when new signing John Martin
took advantage of some slack Linfield defending he shot he ball low into the corner of the net which
left the homeside in disbelief. Newry had chances to finish the game off but so did Linfield. Newry
were denied by Linfield keeper Mathers and  two minutes from the end Davy Larmour made an
incisive run and struck the Newry post and rebounded to a Newry defender.  There were many
promising performances by the Newry players, Paul Evans was the pick of the forwards, John
Martin was influential in midfield while Gavin Dykes and Raymond Byrne were colossal in defence.