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Bangor should have taken
note that Annadale received the league title for the fourth successive
time on Saturday before their game, because it was an ominous warning of
what was to come.
The Carryduff-based side were
clearly in the mood to celebrate their latest piece of silverware and they
took Bangor to the cleaners, winning 8-1 in a game that could certainly be
described as open.
With Annadale upbeat after the
trophy presentation they dominated from the start but Bangor actually
created the first good opportunity when Gareth Morton released Simon
Hunter, but he took the ball too close to the goalkeeper before shooting.
Bangor were to rue his miss when
Annadale grabbed the lead soon afterwards. A slick attack down the right
flank and the ball was crossed for Johnny Quigley, one of five Irish
internationals on show, to finish low into the goal.
Bangor continued to look threatening
on the break and forced a corner but nothing came of it and again the
league leaders showed why you have to be clinical at the top level. They
moved the ball around from Steven Redpath to Ian McKeown and back again
and he set up Ian Hamilton, who turned and scored via a deflection of John
Tormey in the Bangor goal.
Just minutes later Bangor had a
chance to pull one back when, at another penalty corner, Chris Campbell
was left with a close range opportunity but he fired wide.
With half-time approaching an
umpiring decision cost Bangor dearly. Adam Reading appeared to be under an
aerial ball but he was challenged and then the ball was swept out right
for Paul Jackson to cut in and skilfully lift it over the advancing Tormey.
Three-nil at the break and Bangor were looking down the barrel at a
hiding.
It didn't get much better after the
interval despite the valiant efforts of Reading and defensive partner
Gareth Kidd. They were afforded too little protection from those in front
and regularly had to deal with waves of Annadale attackers on their own.
From one such attack Hamilton
grabbed his second. Then, a little luck as he missed his chance of a
hat-trick when Tormey saved after a dubious penalty award. Almost
immediately Hamilton took his frustrations out with a vicious tackle and
was sin-binned for 10 minutes.
Despite the man advantage Bangor
still couldn't claw their was back into the game and Annadale started to
score at regular intervals. First Quigley got a second after a neat
one-two with McKeown, then Chris Jackson flicked a penalty corner high
into the roof of the net and teenager Peter Caruth also grabbed a goal
from close in.
Amid this wreck and ruin Bangor did
have the odd half-chance themselves but they were further hampered by
Nicky Blease being yellow carded against his former club for an over
exuberant tackle on Jackson.
With the game almost up Bangor at
last registered on the scoresheet when a good move down the right found
Michael Harte and his accurate cross left Morton with a simple back post
tap-in the big man doesn't miss.
However, Bangor were not going to
have the last laugh against the league winners and the superb Redpath made
it eight in the dying minutes when he skilfully turned Tormey in the
circle and fired a diving reverse stick shoot into the net. Like the
difference between the teams, he was just too strong, quick and skilful.
A week off to lick their wounds
before the final league game against Banbridge and then Bangor can spent a
summer reflecting on either a host of missed opportunities or the fact
they are firmly established as a Premier League team and that despite
Saturday's result they can compete with anyone.
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