BANGOR FC Ladies assistant coach Josh Eynon was full of praise for how the players managed a quick turnaround and got back to winning ways at Camlough Rovers Ladies last Wednesday night.
Just two days on from exiting the Irish Cup after a 2-0 defeat to Larne Women, the Seasiders returned to NIWFA Championship duties and produced a shining attacking performance to win 7-3 in south Armagh.
A fourth league victory in a row ensured that Chris Dougan’s side remain right in the thick of a pulsating title fight with just six games left.
They turned up the style against the Championship’s second-from-bottom outfit Camlough, who took the game to Bangor having equalised twice in the first half and scored early in the second to reduce the deficit to 5-3.
But braces from Amber Dempster, Olivia Marshall and Janine Jess plus an Amanda Morton strike were more than enough to get the job done for the visitors, who sit on 24 points from 12 games ahead of tomorrow evening’s visit to basement dwellers St Oliver Plunkett Ladies.
Eynon lauded a measured collective display and hailed how Bangor stayed cool to pull away just when it looked like Camlough were reeling them in shortly after the interval.
It was particularly impressive given Lydia Clarke and Jodie Shannon were forced off injured in the first half of the Larne loss. Both featured against Camlough, with Clarke playing the full 90 minutes, and others were carrying knocks yet still left it all out there to claim the spoils.
“Proud of the girls,” Eynon said. “A busy week with two games and hard work here with players playing through injury and maybe different positions, getting youth players more experience too – the likes of Heidi (Wynne) and Tallon (McMahon).
“The girls played very well, they dealt with it well at the start of the second half where they pressed us, but we settled down and managed the game professionally.
“We’re seeing elements of what we’re trying to do in training in the match. Yes, things to work on, but that’s natural, no team in the world has nothing to work on.
“It’s a quick turnaround from playing on Monday night against Premiership opposition in the cup and we’re straight back in the league, and we’ve done exactly what we needed to do.”
A ding-dong opening half saw seven goals, and it was hard to keep track of the scoring at times given the frenetic pace of play. Bangor led within three minutes of kick-off when Jess got free of her marker to turn home Morton’s cross but, eight minutes later, were pegged back as Camlough’s Olivia Connolly converted her own rebound after Seasiders stopper Lucy Winton repelled her initial effort.
That parity lasted just three further minutes when Morton got on the end of an inswinging Dempster delivery and headed home to restore Bangor’s lead, but again the hosts replied when Ellen McCartney neatly finished off a clever passing move to make it 2-2 on 19 minutes.
They were level for only a minute; Marshall grabbing her first of the evening on the very next attack as her low effort squirmed underneath Camlough’s Shannon Sexton to put the visitors back in front.
The Seasiders extended their advantage in the lead-up to half-time – firstly when Jess’ cross-come-shot found its way into the top corner with 28 minutes gone before Dempster latched onto Boyd’s astute ball in behind and plundered home Bangor’s fifth.
Dougan’s side retained their 5-2 lead until the halfway mark, but Camlough came out of the traps early in the second period and Connolly reduced the arrears on 47 minutes with a low shot past Winton.
Bangor hit back on 52 minutes when Dempster – who bagged a remarkable eight for herself in the 9-1 victory back in April – connected to Costa’s deep ball from midfield and slotted past Sexton to restore the three-goal cushion.
Winger Marshall struck what proved to be the final goal of the day just before the hour with a composed finish into the bottom right, with the Yellows content to manage the remainder of the contest and see out the victory.
Bangor are laser-focused on their Championship mission now with their interest in cups over for the year as of last Monday, and Eynon believes the players can reap the benefits of such an approach.
“Our only focus is on the league now until the end of the season and I think that’s a good thing,” he added.
“Obviously we wanted a cup run, but we’re focused on the league and we’ll push up as far as we can.”
After tomorrow’s clash in west Belfast against Plunkett, Bangor are back on home soil when they entertain title rivals Mid Ulster Ladies at Clandeboye Park next Wednesday, August 6.
That encounter at Sally Gardens is the last of a mammoth eight-game run of successive away outings with the Seasiders having played just twice at home since the end of April. But with four of their last five matches back at Clandeboye, the players will hope to ride the crest of a wave and enjoy a celebratory finish to the 2025 season.
