Institute promotion hopes still alive after Bangor draw at the Brandywell

Institute 1

Bangor 1

Portadown were crowned champions of the NIFL Championship today, but Institute's promotion hopes are still alive despite dropping two points at home to Bangor. 

With just one game remaining, there is just one single point separating Bangor, in second, and 'Stute in fifth, with Annagh still very much in the mix in a hotly-contested promotion race. 

Results elsewhere today mean that 'Stute must now win at Portadown on the final day, and hope Annagh and Bangor draw if they are to seal second place and a play-off spot. 

Kevin Deery was clearly unhappy with the display against Annagh last week and he made six changes to his team as a result, the most notable of which was bringing goalkeeper Fintan Doherty in for his first league start in place of Gareth Muldoon.  

With Portadown and Dundela drawing at Shamrock Park, any goal at the Brandywell was bound to be huge and it came ‘Stute’s way just 15 minutes in when Sean Carlin crossed from the right and Oisin Devlin was there at the front post to turn it in from close range for his first goal since October.

‘Stute should have doubled their lead 10 minutes later when Michael Harris was found in behind the Bangor defence, but as he bore down on goal, his touch let him down and James Taylor was able to gather the ball.

‘Stute had yet another chance on the half hour and it was brilliant play which cut Bangor apart. Danny Lafferty started the move which almost ended in a goal for the defender, finding Orrin McLaughlin who played the ball into Harris, with his back to goal. The striker flicked a pass into Lafferty who had stayed forward, and Lafferty aimed a shot at the bottom corner, but Taylor got his fingers to it to deflect the ball behind for a corner.

It was then Fintan Doherty’s turn to provide heroics at the other end, as he saved ‘Stute twice in the space of 60 seconds.

The first was a spectacular save as Scott McArthur’s cross picked out Ben Arthurs whose glancing header was headed to the bottom corner until the young goalkeeper sprung across his goal to get a strong hand on the ball and send it wide.

From the corner, Tiarnan Mulvenna’s delivery went all the way to the back post where it sat up perfectly for Arthurs, who must have thought a goal was certain as he volleyed it from close range, but Doherty was again decisive, showing no fear as he threw himself at the ball to somehow keep it out a second time.

But Bangor were on top at this stage and they grabbed their equaliser just four minutes before the break when a free kick into the area again found Arthur unmarked and this time he was able to hook the ball over Doherty, and Ben Cushnie headed into the unguarded goal on the line.

Defender Howard Beverland then shot just wide as Bangor continued to dominate set-plays and at this stage, ‘Stute needed half time to regroup.

Half Time 1-1

Bangor remained on top in the early stages of the second half  but ‘Stute finally began to get a grip back on the game, and they could well have scored a second 10 minutes in. It looked as if Carlin had missed his opportunity to put a cross in, but he found Caoimhin Porter who did just that, and his delivery found Lafferty unmarked, but the defender’s downward header flew just wide of the target.

As the game passed the hour mark, scores elsewhere meant that ‘Stute had slipped down to fifth, but such were the margins in the Championship, that a goal for Kevin Deery’s team would send them straight back into second place.

But the goal never came, and it never looked like doing so, and it means that 'Stute must now dig deep for one final push at Shamrock Park next Friday night.  

Teams

Institute: Fintan Doherty, Caoimhin Porter (Evan Tweed 80’), Danny Lafferty (Shane Boyle 63’), Dylan King, Shaun Leppard, Orrin McLaughlin (Shane McGinty 84’), Liam Mullan, Jamie Dunne (Cormac Burke 63’), Sean Carlin (Conor Quigley 63’), Oisin Devlin, Michael Harris.

Bangor: James Taylor, Howard Beverland, Lewis Harrison (Jordan Hughes 73’) Ben Arthurs, Ben Cushnie (Adam Neale 84’), Scott McArthur (Martin Bradley 73’), Reece Neale, Ben Walker, Tom Mathieson, Lewis Francis, Tiarnan Mulvenna.

Referee: Shane McGonigle.