Match
summary and images (reproduced with permission and thanks)
Copyright Lisburn Distillery.net, Edward
White and David Hunter
Report
from Edward White
Lisburn
Distillery's Youth Team imprinted their names in club
history by winning this entertaining match and in doing
so they won the prestigious IFA Youth Cup for the first
time in the club's history.
In
a game which was full of enterprising football by two
well matched sides it went right to the wire with the
wee Whites eventually winning via a penalty shoot out
after a final score of 1-1 after extra time. The game
had started with the Whites on the back foot with Portadown
pressing hard immediately from the kick-off and indeed
only but for a good stop by Whites 'keeper Chris McCluskey
and some poor finishing by the Ports it could easily have
been game over within the first ten minutes. As it was
the Whites held on and gradually worked their way back
into the game creating some good openings for themselves
through Mark Patton and Greg Dixon whose looping header
just went narrowly wide on 22 minutes.
Then
on 36 minutes disaster struck for the Whites as the Ports'
Mark Teggart was sent through by a great pass and the
youngster kept a calm head placing a well struck low effort
which evaded McCluskey and gave the Ports the lead. All
to do then for the Whites in the second half and they
almost conceded a second early in the half when a well
placed header just dropped over their cross bar. They
however kept chasing the game hard and this in turn was
forcing Portadown back into their own half with Danny
Ferris in particular causing the Ports defence ongoing
problems. The pressure was building and then on 72 minutes
the wee Whites got the break they needed as Ferris was
tripped as he ran into the Portadown area with the referee
having no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Ferris duly
picked himself up and cheekily proceeded to chip the goalkeeper
from the resulting penalty to level the game.
The
game continued to ebb and flow for the remainder of the
game and also into extra time as both sides pressed for
a winner but no one came closer to winning the game than
Mark Cooling whose superb shot from thirty yards at the
start of extra time just dipped narrowly over the Portadown
crossbar.
So it was then onto to penalties which no doubt would
have had the youngsters' hearts pumping hard. The Whites
were soon ahead as Portadown missed their first penalty
and when Cooling kept a cool head to convert the first
spot kick they were on their way. Three out of the remaining
penalties were converted with Davidson, Blaney, Patton
on target and these kicks coupled with a great stop by
McCluskey was enough to see the wee Whites home.
A great result then for the club and hopefully the first
trophy of many in the years to come at New Grosvenor,
well done to all the lads.
Team:
McCluskey, Hume, Blaney, Hall, McVeigh, Davidson, Price,
Cooling, Patton, Ferris, Dixon
Subs: Baker for Hume, Sullivan for Price, Walsh
for Ferris
Sponsor
of the Lisburn Distillery Youth Team
