Cookstown Youth 1 Northend United 2 Saturday 22nd March 2014
Northend U15s travelled to Mid-Ulster on Saturday to play Cookstown Youth in a League match. The last time these teams met was in Ballymena when the Mid-Ulster team ran out clear winners. The hosts have been turning in some good results of late and were confident of adding to their tslly against the Northend boys.
However they hadn't reckoned on coming up against a Northend team starting to show a bit of form. With no referee appearing, it was agreed that the Cookstown Manager would take the whistle and he went on to give a good display throughout the game.
Cookstown started the strongest team as the Northend boys struggled to find their rhythm. In defence Robbie Dennison, Ryan McKenna and Sam Bennett soaked up the early Cookstown pressure while Bradley Cairns and Zack Herbison always looked dangerous on the break.
Cookstown took the lead after fifteen minutes when a good shot from distance was only parried by Anthony O'Neill in the Northend nets and the Cookstown striker followed up to steer the loose ball in the Northend net.
However the Ballymena Boys were not to be deterred and Zack Herbison outpaced his marker and slid the ball into the Cookstown box, but unfortunately it was cleared before Jordan Savage could get his toe to it.
Cookstown could have doubled their lead on twenty-five minutes as the ball struck the Northend crossbar and the resultant loose ball was cleared off the Northend goal-line. However this was to prove Cookstown's last decent effort in the game. As Bradley Cairns broke down the left wing for Northend and cut inside, a Cookstown defender got in a blocking tackle to prevent a goal-bound shot. Half time score 1-0
To say that this match was a game of two halves is an understatement, when following a good half time chat, the Ballymena boys went on to dominate play in the second half. Bradley Cairns and Zack Herbison began to run the Cookstown defence ragged with their penetrating play. Lewis McFall, Oliver Boyle and Liam McCann were beginning to pull the strings in a busy midfield and when a great throughball found Zack Herbison, his first time shot was well saved by the keeper but the loose ball broke to him and left him with an open net to score in but he somehow hit the post and the ball was eventually cleared to safety.
Northend continued to dominate play and won a series of corners. Bradley Cairns and Jordan Savage both had chances to score from corners but their shots went narrowly past the Cookstown upright. It looked like it was going to be another of those days but Liam McCann had other ideas. Following a Herbison corner, the ball broke to McCann twenty-five yards out and he let fly with an unstoppable shot that hit the top corner of the Cookstown nets. This goal visibly lifted the Blues and with Jack Anderson and Stephen Olliver introduced into play, it was very nearly an inspired substitutions as Stephen Olliver got on the end of a Sam Bennett corner, but once again the ball went narrowly past the Cookstown upright, when it looked easier to score.
Northend got their just rewards after twenty-two minutes of the match, when after some good link-up play between Liam McCann and Zack Herbison, McCann coolly lifted the ball over the Cookstown keeper and into the net. Cookstown came storming back and won two free-kicks on the edge of the Northend box . But the Northend defence was in an mean mood and dealt comfortably with clearing the ball.
Northend had one more good chance in the game before full time but the Cookstown man of the match, their keeper, pulled off another outstanding save. Final score 1-2
Men of the Match: Sam Bennett, Liam McCann
Panel: A O'Neill, S Bennett, R McKenna, R Dennison, O Boyle, L McFall (c), L McCann, A Milligan, J Savage, B Cairns, Z Herbison, S Olliver, C McLauglin, J Anderson, M McAuley, D McKelvey
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