Salley gets out of sticky situation with a treble
PORTADOWN’S Adam Salley grabbed the headlines as he helped his team stretch their lead at the top of the Bluefin Sport Championship.
Not, however, for the hat-trick he scored when the Ports beat a storm for a second week in-arow to breeze to a 7-1 win over Queen’s University and open up a 10-point gap at the summit.
Instead, the striker has hit social media for one that got away — almost.
With the Ports already leading 1-0 thanks to captain Luke Wilson, Salley latched on to the skipper’s headed clearance and slotted the ball past Queen’s goalkeeper Declan Brown. As Salley wheeled away to celebrate in front of the Portadown fans, the ball held up in the muddy goalmouth and stopped about a foot before the line, with only the alertness of Chris Lavery ensuring the hosts went 2-0 up as he provided the finish.
Salley did get to celebrate properly in the second half, three times in fact, as he went on to grab a treble, putting the Ports 4-0 up before Brendan Glackin — on-loan to Queen’s from Matthew Tipton’s side — pulled one back for the Students.
Salley’s third effort was the pick of the bunch, firing a fine dipping volley over Brown to seal his hat-trick.
Lavery got his second before Stephen Murray scored his first goal for the club since his January move from Glenavon to make it a magnificent seven.
With second-placed Loughgall and Ballinamallard United, who are in third, both kicking their heels after late postponements, the Ports now boast a double-figure lead in terms of points over their County Armagh neighbours, who are a point better off than the Mallards.
Ards, meanwhile, moved into fifth place above Dundela on goal difference after a 4-1 win over the east-Belfast side, with Michael McLellan matching Salley in netting a hat-trick.
McLellan scored twice in the first half, either side of a strike from Salou Jallow, to put Ards 3-0 up at half time.
Ross Holden pulled one back for the Duns before Eamon McAllister restored the threegoal lead and McLellan completed his treble with a late strike.
Newry City’s trip to Dergview and the game between PSNI and Ballyclare Comrades were both called off on Saturday morning.
Ballinamallard had already made the 80-mile journey to Knockbreda before a late postponement wiped out that game and Harland & Wolf Welders had likewise travelled to Loughgall when the Lakeview Park pitch was deemed unplayable.