Beragh Swifts 1-2 Enniskillen Town 

Enniskillen Town bounced back from conceding an early goal to claim all three points against ten-man Beragh Swifts and maintain a three-way tie at the top of Division One.  

Jack Todd put the home team ahead after two minutes, but Kane Connor levelled quickly.  

Swifts’ Stephen Browne saw red just before the interval, and Town took advantage in the second half with Alex Fegan’s own goal earning them victory. 

Town manager Ryan Hanna was delighted with his team’s first-half showing, but conceded that the winning goal came in fortuitous circumstances.  

“You are either very good or very lucky, and we were both on Saturday,” he said.  

“We were very good in the first half and then we got a bit of luck in the second half with the own goal.

"We made an error for their goal, but these things happen and we moved on and responded really well.

"Some of the football we played in the first half was brilliant.  After we equalised we dominated possession and created a number of chances.

"I wouldn’t call them clear-cut, but we did enough that we could have been one or two up at halftime, but in fairness to Beragh they defended well and made it difficult for us.  The sending off was probably not what we wanted.

"Beragh had to defend then, and they got everyone behind the ball and we had to try and break them down.

"We were knocking on the door and we had constant pressure and loads of possession in their half and we had to keep working at it.

"They were very resilient, but we deserved it on the whole. It was a difficult away game. But I was glad to get out of there with the three points.” 

Swifts made an ideal start when Jack Todd closed down Town goalkeeper Ben Thompson following Ryan Hanna’s back pass, taking advantage of a slack first touch from the keeper to pick up possession and fire into the net after just two minutes.   

It only took Town six minutes to bounce back, with James Harrigan and Kane Connor putting Swifts’ keeper Peter Ward under pressure allowing Connor to level the match.  

Town then took a grip on the contest, with Harrigan testing Ward from the edge of the penalty area and Jordan Breen heading over at the back post.

Just before halftime, Swifts were reduced to ten when a tackle from Beragh captain Stephen Browne sparked a melee on the pitch, with Browne seeing red.   

The home team responded by sitting deeper and trying to hold out against the division’s top scorers.

Cathal Beacom twice fired over the bar, Hanna had an effort deflected over and Harrigan had a shot saved before the breakthrough finally arrived after 73 minutes.

Town substitute Frank Wallace flicked on a right-wing cross and the touch deceived Fegan who saw the ball deflect off his thigh and past his own goalkeeper.  

Swifts were posing an occasional threat on the counter-attack, but Town kept them out and a late miss from six yards by Adam Breen did not prove costly as Hanna’s side held on to win.