Orrin McLaughlin stunner makes in three successive wins for Institute

Institute 1

HW Welders 0

A brilliant first half goal from Orrin McLaughlin earned Institute a valuable win at the Brandywell this afternoon.  

It is now three wins in a row for Brian Donaghey and his players, who had to dig deep in horrible conditions against a team they lost 5-0 to earlier in the season.  

Welders could well have taken the lead within two minutes of kick off when Kyle Flynn got away down the left and his hanging cross was met by Charlie Dornan who thumped a header off the crossbar. The incident caused an extended dealt in the game however as two ‘Stute players, Shaun Leppard and Oisin Devlin collided in the air with both being treated for head injuries. It meant an early change for the home side with Dylan King replacing Devlin whilst Leppard returned to the field heavily bandaged.

The game struggled to get into any rhythm after that with a strong and freezing wind making things difficult for both sets of players, particularly ‘Stute, with forward passes being caught in the breeze and taken clear of the forward players.

‘Stute ended a rather poor first half on top, with McGovern being forced into a good save to deny Andrew Whiteside while Jamie McCormick fired wildly off target from the resulting corner. 

It took a brilliant effort from McLaughlin to kick this game into life in added time, the midfielder taking aim from 20 yards and sending a looping curling effort with the outside of his left foot over McGovern and into the top corner to make it 1-0.

Conditions deteriorated further at the start of the second half with the arrival of rain, making it even more difficult for the players on the pitch. Both teams soldiered on regardless but it was 15 minutes before either created anything worth mentioning, with Ronan McAleer working hard to win the ball for his team near the corner flag, but his cross was hammered into the evening air by Matthew Walker.

‘Stute just couldn’t keep hold of the ball for any length of time and that only encouraged Welders who began to apply real pressure for the first time in the game. They were being frustrated by an outstanding defensive effort from ‘Stute however, with King and Leppard winning every ball in the air.

‘Stute came so close to wrapping up all three points with 10 minutes to go when Mark McFadden’s cross was brilliantly controlled by McCormick, who turned sharply and shot, only for McGovern to scoop the ball over the bar with his right foot.

It was down to narrow margins in the last few minutes with Welders still very much in the game, and another big moment came and went with ‘Stute denied a second goal for a second time.

This time, substitute Cathair Friel. On the pitch a matter of minutes, led a ‘Stute counter-attack which ended with the striker chipping the ball brilliantly over McGovern only to be denied by the crossbar. The rebound almost fell perfectly for Ronan McAleer but the ball still somehow stayed out and Welders survived again.

It ultimately didn't matter for 'Stute, who held on to move up to sixth place in the IFA Championship.

Teams

INSTITUTE: Dylan Doherty, Ronan McAleer, Shaun Leppard, Rhys McDermott, Mark McFadden, Orrin Mclaughlin, Jamie Dunne (Cormac Burke 83’), Matthew Walker, Oisin Devlin (Dylan King 5’), Jamie McCormick (Cathair Friel 83’), Andrew Whiteside.

HW WELDERS: Joe McGovern, Daniel McMurray, Kyle Flynn, Callum Byers, Craig Harris, Alan McMurtry, Ronan Wilson, Matthew Ferguson (Jonathan Frazer 69’), Michael McLellan, Stephen Garrett (Eric Akassou 82’), Charlie Dornan.

REFEREE: Louise Thompson.