NAFL DIVISION 2A DONAGHADEE FC 3 BANGOR SWIFTS 1
by Dennis Nash
DONAGHADEE collected just a second win of the season with victory over Bangor Swifts on Saturday in a major boost to their survival hopes. It was the Bangor outfit who launched the opening attacking salvo but ’Dee’s James Hamilton was very quickly off his goal line as Ruaidhri McCarney chased the through ball. Both teams had displayed plenty of attacking tendencies in the early minutes and the game was only 10 minutes old when Jack Trotter pushed the home side into the lead. The pace and purpose of the play from both teams certainly had the shine of goal promise around it and, just two minutes after falling behind, the Swifts were back on equal pegging as Adam Sandison squared the affair.’Dee captain Connor Caldwell was just beaten to the ball when the onrushing ‘keeper Jamie McBratney advanced smartly from his line while, at the other end, the forceful trio of Ruaidhri McCarney, Adam Sandison and Paul Magennis stayed highly active with a strong forceful presence. The early pace had certainly held and the home side forced two corner kicks in quick succession, while William Fitzgerald and Lewis Gornall were constantly pushing forward looking for possible openings. Ruaidhri McCarney was working hard in attack for the Swifts but Jake Shields and Dylan Robinson were very pronounced factors in the home defence. With the nearby church clock sounding the half-hour mark, a Rory Cubbon free-kick looked threatening, but visiting ‘keeper Jamie McBratney again was equal to it.At the other end James Hamilton held a Paul Magennis shot and Paddy Deery had a good attempt sail just outside the goal frame. Both teams had presented plenty of forward flair as the first 45 minutes tailed off, but the home side had probably tipped the scales with their more convincing forward power.It remained anyone’s game as the second 45 minutes got underway. The Swifts’ William Fitzgerald tidied up after a tense early attack from the home side and, with Paul Magennis once more pushing the visitors forward, the post-interval exchanges opened out in a front-foot fashion. After 56 minutes, Trotter grabbed his and Donaghadee’s second goal to put the home side in front once again. Then just a minute later, Cubbon – who had etched his name into the game with a solid performance of energy and skill – added his name to the scoresheet to give the hosts some breathing space. Bangor Swifts most certainly did not stop building up attacking opportunities but the home side had done enough and the points were locked away
