ABBEY RESULT CRUCIAL FOR YM HOPES

ALAN MURPHY reckons Dunmurry Young Men’s surge to promotion can be traced all the way back to a gruelling 4-2 win over 18th Newtownabbey at the turn of the year. The Napier Park outfit sealed an instant return to Division 1B two weeks ago after Mark Green’s strike earned Murphy’s injury-ravaged side a gutsy 1-0 win at Bangor Swifts. The victory was a 12th on the bounce in a run which started with a 5-0 rout of Dromore Amateurs on November 26 last year. But it was another win, this time coming at home to the 18th on January 7, which Murphy feels was pivotal in their promotion charge. Having lost on their travels to their rivals at the top of the table, the likes of Shorts, St Luke’s and 18th, the victory over the Monkstown men was a shot in the arm, fuelling belief among the players that they could hunt down a top two spot alongside St Luke’s. “I’m over the moon with promotion,” beamed Murphy. “I said St Luke’s were going to be hard to beat and they were, I think we were the only team to beat them and they went on a big run to win it and we went on a big run to get promotion. “It was tough, but we are just happy to get back up and looking back, I think the win over 18th Newtownabbey was a big one. “That was the toughest game that we had and whenever we came through that, it gave us a lift.” With 97 goals, Dunmurry Young Men finished the campaign as the most prolific team in the Amateur League’s Intermediate section, something which should stand them in good stead ahead of their assault on 1B next season. “We had goals coming from all over the pitch but it’s going to be a lot tougher next season, we just need to add a few more players and see how we go,” said Murphy. “You need to strengthen every year and when any good players become available, we’ll be interested in signing them, in getting them on board so we can have another rattle at it.”