Loughgall Youth

Loughgall Youth under 9′s recommenced their season on Saturday after the Christmas break. They drew 2 – 2 with Portadown and went down 4-0 against Sunnyside.  The match against Portadown was an entertaining affair with Portadown taking the lead against the run of play in the first half.  The Youth equalised at the start of the second half with a fine shot from the edge of the box from Chris Lindsay. Portadown quickly restored their lead before James Black whipped over a vicious, swerving corner which was put into his own net by one of the Portadown defenders.  The Youth held out for a creditable draw, which on the reflection of play was a fair result.  Nathan Stoops missed very little at the back, Chris Lindsay and Ryan Scott worked hard in midfield, with James and Alexander Black putting in some fine crosses from the wings.  Jordan Bentley worked hard up front.

The second match against Sunnyside was one to forget especially the first half when none of the guys got going at all.  Misplaced passes, failure to close the opposition down and in general being second to every ball lead to the Youths downfall.  However encouragement can be taken from all the boys for the way they played in the second half.  If they would have played in the first half, the way they played in the second half, then the scoreline may have been a lot different.  Based on their second half performances, Jamie Berry tried his best in goals, Nathan Stoops and Matthew Monaghan missed nothing at the back, Chris and Ryan played well in midfield, the Black twins worked hard on the wings and Jordan worked hard up front.

Squad- Jamie Berry, Nathan Stoops, Ryan Scott, Matthew Monaghan, James Black, Chris Lindsay, Alexander Black, Jordan Bentley.

Player of the day was James Black.

Loughgall were back to league business on Saturday morning and came home with all the three points after a commanding win against Dungoyne.

In difficult playing conditions Loughgall found themselves playing into a strong wind resulting in them having to defend in the early part of the match.  Centre backs Jason Dodds and Joshua King made some telling tackles and interventions to clear any danger and prevented any Dungoyne shots on goal.  In a quick counter attack a good through ball from Adam Wright put Matthew Willis in the clear he ran clear off the defender and fired in a great shot high into the net from just inside the box to put his side one goal to the good.  This goal gave Loughgall a lift and soon after Willis made it two following a good pass from McKew the striker rounded the keeper and side footed it into the net.  Dungoyne were not out of the match yet as within five minutes they pulled a goal back. After breaking down the right their winger crossed the ball into the box and with Loughgall slow to pick up the Dungoyne players running into the box a Dungoyne player hammered the ball home giving Loughgall keeper Sam Monaghan little chance.  Just before the break the impressive Adam Wright restored Loughgall’s two goal advantage with a well taken goal after good work from Adam Robb.

After halftime Loughgall now playing with the wind continued to press forward and a great pass from James Hall put Willis in the clear but he was fouled at the edge of the box just when it looked like he was about to score.  Matthew Telford now playing on the left wing added a good forth goal as Loughgall continued to dominate the play, with the Dungoyne players heads now dropped and with them seeming to go down with every tackle it proved a difficult match for the young referee.  Near the end of the match a piece of quick thinking from Right winger Adam Robb with a long throw to the unmarked Adam Wright put Adam in the clear and he coolly finished with a good right foot shot into the corner of the net.

Overall a good display from the young villagers in very difficult playing conditions with the team now looking forward to next weeks match against the unbeaten league leaders Lisburn Youth.

Squad- Sam Monaghan, Mark Palmer, Joshua King, Jason Dodds, Matthew Telford, Jac McElveen, Sam McKew, James Hall, Adam Robb, Matthew Willis, Adam Wright, Jamie Haire.

Scorers- Matthew Willis 2, Adam Wright 2 & Matthew Telford.

Players of the day- Jamie Haire, Jason Dodds & Matthew Willis

With Donegal Celtic unable to fulfill their Lisburn league fixture with Loughgall, who were awarded the 3 points, a friendly was arranged last minute with Armagh City who also found their league fixture postponed.

Right from the first whistle, Loughgall showed real hunger and desire as they dominated possession in the opening exchanges. Jonathan Ewart and Dale Mulligan linked well with Kyle Gilmore who were causing the Armagh defence all sorts of problems.

Loughgall were playing with pace and it was surely only a matter of time before the opening score would arrive. A long range speculative Jordan Finlay effort deceived the Armagh keeper and found the back of the net to break the deadlock.

Another slick Loughgall move involving Daniel Neill, James McCormack and Adam Alexander saw Jonathan Ewart force a great stop from the Armagh keeper before Dale Mulligan’s follow up effort was also blocked. William Graham then sent Jordan Finlay down the right who in turn slide Jonathan Ewart in behind the Armagh defence to double the Loughgall lead with a well struck shot.

A Dale Mulligan cross caused panic in the Armagh defence as Kyle Gilmores blocked effort fell to Adam Alexander who’s first time effort failed to find the target.

Loughgall had a real solid look about them in defence with Josh Woods and Scott McCann in commanding form. Daniel Neill then found James McCormack who set himself and lashed a fantastic left footed shot into the top corner of the Armagh net to give his side some breathing space.

With half time approaching William Graham sent Dale Mulligan clear down the right and he cut inside and fired a clinical low drive into the far corner to leave the half time score at 4-0 to Loughgall.

Loughgall continued to search for more goals at the start of the second half, Kyle Gilmore linked with Jonathan Ewart who beat his man and unselfishly squared to the unmarked Dale Mulligan who fired home number five from 12 yards.

Jack Hamilton and Luke Cartwright entered the fray and they combined to win Loughgall a corner. Kyle Gilmore swung the ball over and it was met by William Graham and Luke Cartwright, the ball flew into the Armagh net, with William Graham adjudged to have got the more telling touch.

Loughgall had to concentrate on keeping their discipline and shape as Armagh were starting to look more dangerous on the break, putting Ryan Parr, William Graham and Josh Woods under pressure before forcing Daniel Acheson to push a looping goal bound effort wide.

From the resulting Armagh corner Loughgall broke and Jack Hamilton threaded an inch perfect pass through to James McCormack who raced clear to finish confidently for his second goal of the day and his teams seventh to complete the scoring.

This was a great team performance from Loughgall, who added a cutting edge to their recent excellent defensive performances. They will hope to carry this kind of form into the rest of the season.

Squad: Daniel Acheson , William Graham (Capt), Josh Woods, Scott McCann , James McCormack , Jordan Finlay, Daniel Neill, Adam Alexander, Jonathan Ewart, Dale Mulligan, Kyle Gilmore , Luke Cartwright , Ryan Parr & Jack Hamilton.

Loughgall Youths Scorers:  Jordan Finlay, Jonathan Ewart, Dale Mulligan (2), James McCormack (2) & William Graham.

Loughgall Youth Man of the Match: William Graham

Donegal Celtic were unable to fulfill the fixture – Loughgall awarded a 1-0 victory.

Loughgall had plenty to think about in the first half as they played against a strong wind and Lurgan were hoping to capitalise on this advantage but Loughgall stood firm and attacked Lurgan well when given a chance.  When lurgan did manage to create chances Loughgall goalkeeper Mark McKitterick was in fine form protecting his goal in very tough conditions. Loughgall opened the scoring after 20mins when Jason Ellison whipped in an inch perfect free kick into the box and Matthew Loney was there to strike the ball home. The last few minutes of the first half were very tense as Lurgan pushed for a goal but Loughgall stood firm and held them off.

Loughgall looked to take advantage in the second half but like lurgan in the first half they never got the chance to use the windy conditions however they nearly extended their lead when Jackson Holmes just shot wide from 20 yards. As the half continued Loughgall started to get stronger and the Lurgan attacks were getting less but then disaster stuck when Loughgall lost the ball in the centre of midfield and Lurgan attacked in numbers with the ball ending up in the Loughgall goal. As we entered the last 10mins the game it was an end to end affair as both teams went for the win but Loughgall began to get stronger as the final few minutes approached and Ben Neill broke free and tried to score at the near post but the Lurgan Goalkeeper made a fine save and earned Lurgan a point.

Normally a point against Lurgan would have been a good result but there were a few disappointed faces in the Loughgall dressing room showing the progress this set of players are achieving this season with recent performances and hopefully the points will follow soon. Next week Loughgall are due to take on Ridgeway Rovers @ Wallace with a 11.15 kick off.

Squad: Mark McKitterick, Adam Morrow, Jason Ellison, Aaron Maye, James McCoy, Keith Kearney, Ben Neill, Jackson Holmes, Matthew Loney, Kyle Hamilton, Harry McNeely, James Smyth, Oisin McNally.

Loughgall made the unbeaten league leaders Distillery work hard on Saturday with another very encouraging performance by the villagers.  In the first half play was fairly even, Distillery forced a few chances just before the break but Loughgall too had their chances with John McWilliams giving Distillery a few things to think a bout.  Overall the boys put in a hard shift and put Distillery under pressure when they were on the ball, forcing mistakes.  At the break it was 0-0 and very even.

At the start of the second half Angus Boyd tested the Distillery keeper with a good effort, but this was well held by the keeper.  Distillery put us under a bit of pressure then for a short period but Jordan Frizzell and Mark Johnston were equal to this and the boys tried playing our way out from the back.  The story of our day seemed to be that during our attacks the ball didn’t just fall to our man at the crucial moment.  With ten minutes to go Distillery hit us on the counter and although Matthew Lutton saved the initial strike, another attacker was able to tap in from a few yards out.

We gained a free kick with 3 minutes to go and I committed numbers to the attack, but when this broke down, Distillery again hit us on the counter and scored.  Unfortunately for the first time all day we were no focused and from the centre and gifted Distillery a third goal – albeit through a fine strike.

We had a disappointed changing room after the match, our effort was first class but the key difference was they took their chances while we didn’t take ours.  We need to take the many positives from this game and learn our lessons.  The boys now appear to have the component that has been missing all season – belief in themselves.  We now need another big shift next week against Donegal Celtic.

Squad: Matthew Lutton, Nathan Robinson, Jordan Frizzell, Mark Johnston, Sam McAdam, Adam Farrell, Ethan Rusk, Scott Capper, Angus Boyd, Robbie Wright, John McWilliams, Tom Holland , Owen Cairns.

Man of the Match: Mark Johnston.

Loughgall faced Dromore on Saturday morning in the Majors u10 cup and came home with their passageway safely secured into the next round due to a convincing 5-1 win.

Loughgall piled the pressure on from the start with Adam wright grabbing an early goal to settle the nerves. Soon after striker Matthew Willis found himself in a good shooting position and he made no mistake lobbing the keeper from 10yrds out.  Dromore produced a few counter attacks and they did brake in numbers at times keeping Loughgalls four midfielders busy with them having to get back quickly to cover and help the back line of Palmer, King, Dodds and Haire.

Some great crunching tackles went in and Loughgall proved very solid in defence giving the Dromore attackers little chance to get a shot on goal.  Loughgall keeper Sam Monaghan was always alert to any danger and he was sharp to come off his line when needed to clear the ball.  Just before the break Loughgall added a third due to a great shot coming in from Chris Hutchinson who left a simple tap in for Winger Adam Wright for his 2nd of the day.

After the break Loughgall made a few changes and had to be alert as Dromore tried to get themselves back into the game and they did pull a goal back after being awarded a penalty for a unfortunate hand ball inside the area.  However Loughgall response was immediate with a quick break and clever pass from team captain Sam McKew who found Adam wright who finished in style to get his hatrick.

Loughgall had new signing James Hall on for his debut and he impressed with some nice passes and touches on the ball linking up well with Willis, McElveen and Wright.  Another good attack from Loughgall saw the ball played over the heads of the Dromore defenders and a good burst of speed from Matthew Willis taking him clear of the defenders he calmly slotted the ball under the diving keeper into the back of the net to finish off a dominate display of football from the young villagers.

Unbeaten in four games and recording three wins from four the Loughgall lads look forward to getting back to the league matches next Saturday away to Dungoyne u10s at Loughmoss Carryduff.

Squad- Sam Monaghan, Mark Palmer, Joshua King, Jason Dodds, Jamie Haire, Adam Wright, Chris Hutchinson, Sam McKew, Jac McElveen, Matthew Willis, James Hall, Matthew Telford, Adam Robb.

Scorers Adam Wright 3, Matthew Willis 2.

Players of the day – Adam Wright & Jason Dodds.

Loughgall started briskly and immediately took the game to Fivemiletown. Indeed Loughgall keeper Connor Brown and their back four of, Ryan Parr, James Orr, Matthew Cupples and Joel Paynter didn’t have an awful lot to do for the first 10mins of the game. Tim Wharton, Ryan Faulkner, Luke Murray and Jake Shields worked extremely hard in midfield supplying Rhys McMaster and Kyle West with some excellent passes enabling several early shots at the Fivemiletown goal, including 2 into their side netting.

However not until the 12th minute did Tim Wharton find the net after some skilful and determined footwork down the left wing. Fivemiletown fought back and with some good breaks looked very dangerous at times, forcing Loughgalls back four to up their work rate, which they did admirably. The tireless Luke Murray who seemed to be involved in  the action in every area of the pitch  was next to hit the target, getting a foot to a Tim Wharton cross in the 18th minute. Loughgall continued to dominate and around the 25min mark with some excellent teamwork and passing from Tim Wharton and Kyle West, Rhys McMaster slotted home Loughgalls 3rd. Fivemiletown again came back strong and showed great character scoring their first just prior to half time, chipping Loughgalls keeper as he came out to narrow the angle. Half time score Loughgall 3-1 Fivemiletown.

Second half continued similar to the first, Loughgall maintaining most of the possession, although their keeper was forced to make a couple of decent stops with Fivemiletown continuing  to be dangerous on the break. Even with the fresh legs and hard work of Zane Brown, Jamie Barbour and Ben Edgar, Loughgall again had difficulty finding  the net with several near misses, until midway through the second half when Jake Shields brought Loughgalls tally to 4. With some excellent football from both teams the final score set at Loughgall 4-1 Fivemiletown.

Squad: Connor Brown, Joel Paynter, Matthew Cupples, James Orr, Ryan Parr, Luke Murray, Ryan Faulkner, Jake Shields, Rhys McMaster, Tim Wharton, Kyle West, Jamie Barbour, Ben Edgar & Zane Brown.

Scorers: Luke Murray, Jake Shields, Rhys McMaster & Tim Wharton.

Loughgall Youth Man of the Match: Luke Murray.

Loughgall started brightly against Lisburn Youth as the industrious Jonathan Ewart and hard working Adam Alexander put the Lisburn Youth goal under pressure.

The central midfield battle was keenly fought with Daniel Neill and William Graham competing well with their opposite numbers. A dangerous Adam Alexander cross was cleared just as Jonathan Ewart was about to pounce.

At the other end, Daniel Acheson had to be alert to come of his line and snuff out a couple of Lisburn Youth counter attacks. Josh Woods, Jack Hamilton, James McCormack and Scott McCann also had to be on their toes as Lisburn looked dangerous on the break.

Jack Hamilton and Kyle Gilmore combined well before Adam Alexander was upended in the box, but the referee waved play on. Another dangerous Adam Alexander cross saw Jonathan Ewart meet it at the front post but his effort was well blocked.

With half time approaching, Jonathan Ewart and Luke Cartwright combined to put Kyle Gilmore clear, but the Lisburn Youth keeper was quick of his line to block the shot and leave Loughgall with nothing to show for an excellent first half performance.

Lisburn Youth, now with the advantage of the slope forced a number of corners early in the second half. One of these corners was allowed to bounce at the front post by the Loughgall defence and a looping header was headed clear by James McCormack on the back post, but the referee adjudged the ball to have crossed the line for the opening score.

Much to Loughgall’s credit they continued to play good football and push for the equalizer which their performance deserved, but Lisburn always looked dangerous, and forced a fantastic full length save from the impressive Daniel Acheson.

Jordan Finlay and Dale Mulligan entered the fray as Loughgall continued to press. The energetic Jonathan Ewart was then brought down and Loughgall committed players forward for the free kick in search of the equalizer. Lisburn cleared the danger and broke at pace to add a well taken second goal to secure the three points.

Today was another case of missed opportunities, as Loughgall again failed to convert their chances when on top in the game and turn their possession into goals. The team continues to play excellent football, but really need to be more ruthless in front of goal, as the first goal is so important at this level.

Squad: Daniel Acheson, Jack Hamilton ,  Josh Woods, William Graham (Capt), Scott McCann , Kyle Gilmore, Daniel Neill, Adam Alexander, James McCormack , Jonathan Ewart, Luke Cartwright, Dale Mulligan & Jordan Finlay.

Loughgall Youths Scorers: None

Loughgall Youth Man of the Match: Adam Alexander

Loughgall struggled to make an impact in this game as Hillsborough remained in the Loughgall half for most of the first half and it was no surprise they took the lead. Loughgall were glad to see half time when they were able to regroup and it worked as Loughgall started the second half brightly and were soon causing Hillsborough major problems. As the half continued Loughgall finally got the goal they deserved when Jason Ellison completely confused the Hillsborough defence as he took the slightest touch with the ball falling to Matthew Loney who put the ball into the net.

Loughgall continued to put on the pressure and Declan Hughes hit the post soon after. As the game continued it looked as though Loughgall were the team that were going to win but then Hillsborough broke and Loughgall were not able to clear the danger and Hillsborough scored. The last few minutes was all Loughgall as they went after a deserved goal but Hillsborough nearly added a third but Aaron Maye got back to clear the danger. Loughgall like so many other games this season deserved something from this game especially with their second half display but unfortunately lost a very close game 2-1. Next week Loughgall are due to take on Lurgan in Lurgan with a 09.30 kick off.

Squad: Mark McKitterick, Adam Morrow, Ben Browne, Jason Ellison, Aaron Maye, James McCoy, Keith Kearney, Declan Hughes, Ben Neill, Jackson Holmes, Matthew Loney, Kyle Hamilton, Harry McNeely, James Smyth.