Stewart bags three as Ballinamallard set up Coleraine final

Ballinamallard United will play Coleraine in the final of the North West Senior Cup, after a first-half hat-trick from Darragh Stewart helped them demolish Institute 7-2 at Ferney Park on Tuesday night.

The victory ended a run of three consecutive defeats for Ballinamallard, with manager Mark Stafford delighted at the performance of his players.

“Stute played a very young team but we still had to go about it the right way, and the boys were very professional,” he said.

“We went down early to a wonder strike and the boys could have panicked, but they didn’t. Peter Maguire was exceptional and showed his qualities, and Darragh Stewart was in sparkling form for 45 minutes before we took him off. I was really pleased with the performance. It is good to get a win under our belts and now we have a final to look forward to.”

Stafford made wholesale changes to the team that lost to Annagh on Saturday, with only Darragh Stewart, Peter Maguire and Sean McAteer retaining their starting places. John Edgar captained the side on his 150th appearance for Ballinamallard, with Jamie Dunne returning from illness and Gary Armstrong named in a squad for the first time since August.

Institute named a youthful squad for the match, but they made the perfect start when Riley Fitzpatrick curled a shot from 25 yards into the top corner in the third minute.

Ballinamallard hit back quickly however, with a Peter Maguire’s back post header levelling the game three minutes later.

Maguire was an influential figure in the first-half and his pass set Stewart clear after 16 minutes, and the winger rounded the keeper and fired into the net from a tight angle to give Ballinamallard the lead for the first time. Nathan Sherry then saw his header come back off the outside of the post, and Sean McAteer and John Edgar both had efforts at goal, before the home team made it 3-1 in the 37th minute.

Stewart won possession as Institute tried to play it out from the back, and he sidestepped a defender before lashing a low shot from 18 yards into the corner of the net.

Four minutes later Stewart won possession again near the corner flag and cut the ball back for McAteer to score his first Ballinamallard goal.

Stewart completed his hat-trick in stylish fashion in the final minute of the first-half, collecting a long diagonal from Maguire and dinking the ball over the keeper.

Ballinamallard continued to press forward in the second half and seven minutes after the restart they moved further ahead when Ultan O’Grady won possession and set Jamie Dunne away down the left and his cross was converted by Darragh Byrne.

Institute made it 6-2 moments later after Ballinamallard failed to clear a cross, but Ballinamallard eliminated any fears of a late collapse when substitute Josh McIlwaine headed in Byrne’s cross to seal the victory.