Matchweek four in the Premiership brought plenty of talking points, with Coleraine maintaining their unbeaten start, Linfield making it three wins in a row and Crusaders leaving it late to claim a huge victory at the Oval.
Here’s how all five games unfolded across another entertaining weekend of Irish League action.
Portadown 0-3 Coleraine (Friday)
Coleraine continued their impressive unbeaten start to the season with a convincing 3-0 victory over Portadown at Shamrock Park on Friday night.
Matthew Shevlin gave the Bannsiders the perfect start inside four minutes, before Senan Devine doubled their advantage with a header from Ben Doherty’s corner. Portadown had their moments and showed some positive intent, but Coleraine always looked the more dangerous side.
Will Patching added a third from the penalty spot in the second half to seal another comfortable win. Coleraine remain firmly among the early pace-setters, while Portadown’s difficult start continues with four defeats from four games.
Bangor 0-4 Carrick Rangers
Carrick Rangers produced a ruthless second-half display to secure a comprehensive 4-0 victory away to Bangor.
Matthew Snoddy had given the visitors an early lead, but Bangor remained in the contest and created opportunities to get themselves back into the game. Carrick had also been guilty of missing chances, with Danny Gibson somehow firing over from close range shortly before the hour mark.
Gibson quickly put that miss behind him, though, doubling Carrick’s lead before turning provider for Paul Heatley. Joe Crowe then completed the scoring with a stunning late volley as Stephen Baxter’s side bounced back in style from last week’s defeat to Coleraine.
Cliftonville 0-2 Dungannon Swifts
Dungannon Swifts left Solitude with all three points after taking advantage of Cliftonville being reduced to ten men shortly before half-time.
The Reds had enjoyed plenty of possession and had looked capable of finding a breakthrough, but Harry Wilson’s dismissal changed the game. Dungannon began to take control after the break and eventually made their numerical advantage count.
Kealan Dillon opened the scoring on the hour before Sean McAllister capitalised on some sloppy Cliftonville defending to make it 2-0. It was another impressive result for Rodney McAree’s side, while Cliftonville will be disappointed to have lost back-to-back league games after such a promising start.
Glentoran 1-2 Crusaders
Crusaders secured a dramatic late victory at the Oval as Aaron Reid’s 88th-minute winner stunned Glentoran.
The Glens will wonder how they did not take control of the game during a dominant first half. They created a number of excellent opportunities, hit the crossbar and were denied by some desperate Crusaders defending, only to fall behind just before the break when Owen Wardell finished at the back post.
Ben Gallagher eventually got Glentoran back on level terms in the second half, but Crusaders struck again late on through substitute Reid. It is a huge three points for Declan Caddell’s side, while Declan Devine will be left frustrated after his team created more than enough opportunities to win the game.
Limavady United 0-2 Linfield
Linfield made it three successive league victories with a professional 2-0 win over Limavady United at the Showgrounds.
The Blues dominated possession for much of the afternoon, although Limavady showed enough to suggest they could cause problems and Alfie Gaston went close to giving the hosts a surprise lead. Matthew Fitzpatrick eventually broke the deadlock before half-time with his first goal of the season.
Adam Frizzell doubled Linfield’s advantage on the hour mark and David Healy’s side saw the game out comfortably. After losing on the opening day, Linfield have responded with wins over Glentoran, Cliftonville and now Limavady, giving them plenty of momentum heading into the weeks ahead.
Limavady can still take positives from their performance and will feel they have competed well in several of their opening fixtures, but they remain searching for their first points since returning to the Premiership.
