Ballinamallard Reserves 6-1 Castlederg United

Ballinamallard Reserves moved three points clear at the top of Division Two with a 6-1 victory over Castlederg United.  

The Mallards went in at halftime two ahead after a Reece Byrne goal and an own goal, and they sealed the win with further second half strikes from Conor Stewart, Jack Beatty and two from Justin McBride before Dylan Russell grabbed a late consolation for Castlederg. 

Ballinamallard manager Ally Irwin felt the scoreline was a fair reflection of his team’s superiority.  “It was a good result and a performance that got the result it deserved,” he said.  

“We created a lot of chances and we were fairly clinical, but if you are being harsh there were two or three fairly simple finishes that got away from us and also a couple of offside decisions that on a different day go the other way, but ultimately we can have no complaints.

"We scored six goals and played really, really well so we are happy with the way we're trending at the moment.

"Three points isn’t much of a gap at the top of the table and there is a long way to go, because we're only eight games into an eighteen-game season, so we are not quite halfway there yet.

"It’s nice to be up top at any stage, but we will be more worried about where we are in ten games time.” 

Castlederg were the division’s pacesetters in the early stages of the season, but they had slipped off the top in recent weeks and came into the match against the new leaders on the back of a three-game losing streak.  

It was the Mallards that started confidently, and the visitors survived a strong penalty claim in the opening minute when Conor Stewart went down inside the area.  

Dylan Seaney then broke forward from right back and cut into the penalty area but his shot was saved by Calvin Kennedy.

The keeper was quickly called on again to save from Byrne, who also struck the outside of the post from 20 yards moments later.

Jack Beatty then collected Dylan Donnelly’s pass but fired into the side netting. The pressure was mounting on Castlederg, and they succumbed in the 38th minute when the ball fell to Byrne after a throw-in and he lashed a half volley into the roof off the net from 15 yards out.  

Adam McCreery then headed Stewart’s cross over the bar before Ballinamallard doubled their lead.

Byrne was again influential in the move, with his low shot coming back off the post and rebounding off the keeper before going into the net.  

Kennedy fared better with Byrne’s next shot, diving to touch it around the post, but he could only watch as Cameron Lucas’  curling effort just before halftime came back off the crossbar. 

Three goals in a fifteen-minute spell in the middle of the second half sealed the game for Ballinamallard.

Ciaran O’Reilly’s pass down the left flank released Donnelly, and he advanced to the byline before cutting the ball back for Stewart to blast in from 12 yards.

Justin McBride came off the substitute’s bench to make his first appearance in three months following injury, and it took him only three minutes to get back among the goals when he collected a cutback from Byrne and cut inside a defender before finding the bottom corner of the net.

Five minutes later he netted his second when Beatty’s backheel set him clear inside the box, and he side-footed past Kennedy.

Jack Beatty scored Ballinamallard’s sixth when he followed up on Odhran McGovern’s shot to tap in.

Dylan Russell pulled a goal back for Castlederg when he won possession high up the pitch and fired into the top corner from the edge of the area, but the goal could not prevent Castlederg slipping to a fourth consecutive defeat.