Home sweet home as Ardee run riot
BELLURGAN UNITED ARDEE CELTIC 0 6
SUNDAY’S NEFL Premier Division match was hastily moved from a frozen Bellurgan to Townparks and Ardee Celtic made the most of home advantage to hit the Peninsula men for six.
It’s a result that gives a huge boost to the Deesiders in their push for top-flight safety, while Bellurgan - who would have moved fourth had they won - are looking at a mid-table finish after this embarrassing defeat.
Even after being rescheduled for Ardee’s home ground the match was in danger of falling victim to the weather and the officials had to check the pitch at half-time following heavy snowfalls.
At that stage Ardee were only a single goal ahead and there was little sign of the rout that was to follow.
From the start Ardee looked happier in the difficult conditions, with Bellurgan slow to the ball, and from the first scoring opportunity Lorcan Myles dragged his shot wide of Robert Arthur’s goal after being played in by Ross Gaynor.
Operating in the ‘10’ role, Gaynor was influential, setting up brother Darryn with a timed cross, but his header sailed over the bar before missing with an out-stretched leg from a Stuart Osbourne cross.
Then it was Bellurgan’s turn to threaten and on three occasions in quick succession they failed to hit the target.
At the other end a Ross Gaynor free hit the the Bellurgan wall and the ball broke to brother Darryn whose effort was saved by Arthur.
The deadlock was broken on 35 minutes when Myles played in Ross Gaynor down the line and the former League of Ireland star beat the full-back before firing past Arthur for 1-0.
Gareth Kane twice went close to doubling that advantage when he headed over the bar and then couldn’t find a way past Arthur from a bicycle-kick attempt.
Ardee netminder Stuart Reynolds was relieved to see a Bellurgan shot fly just wide from a rare attack by the visitors, but another Ardee chance went abegging when no one was able to connect with Kane’s dangerous ball across the six-yard box.
On the restart Arthur denied Ross Gaynor, while Oisin McGee’s timely tackle denied Bellurgan an equaliser, but Ardee’s second goal - scored on 54 minutes - opened the floodgates.
From a Bellurgan corner Ardee counter-attacked and created a two-on-one situation, with Niall Sharkey setting up Darryn Gaynor who finished to the bottom corner.
Two further goals arrived in the space of a minute before the hour mark as Myles fired home a rebound after a Ross Gaynor shot was saved, and Darryn Gaynor then got the better of Arthur in a one-on-one situation.
At the other end Reynolds was twice pressed into action, tipping one attempt over the bar and racing out to deny the Bellurgan striker on another occasion, but the keeper wasn’t overly troubled.
To rub salt in Bellurgan’s wounds, they conceded another two goals in the space of 60 seconds around the 71-minute mark. Darryn Gaynor got on the end of brother Ross’s cross to tap into an empty net for his hat-trick, and then sub James McMullen beat the Bellurgan left-back and fired to the bottom corner.
To complete Bellurgan’s misery, they had Ray Finnegan shown a straight red card following an offthe-ball incident and a chance for a last-minute consolation wasn’t taken as a cross bounced right across the Ardee six-yard box. BELLURGAN: Robert Arthur, Stephen Finnegan, Diarmuid Murphy, Ray Finnegan, Emmet Rogan, Daniel O’Connor, Keith Finnegan, Gavin Gregory, Daniel McDonnell (Declan Sharkey), Owen Armstrong. Tadhg O’Connor. Other sub used: Shane O’Brien.