Rangers claim first away win

The first chance fell to captain Stevie Coulter and from the edge of the box he rattled the crossbar with a thunderous drive which bounced down onto the line and back out.

On 65 minutes, Rathfriland got their noses in front when the ball got through the Wellington back four and debutant Noble found himself free to sink a volley into the bottom corner.

Darren McGrath almost added a second on 80 minutes when he wriggled free of three Wellington defenders to give himself space for a rasping shot which the Wellington keeper tipped on to the bar.

Wellington almost stole a point with just three minutes to go. A long punt up-field was chased by the Wellington striker and he outpaced Paul Evans. Although Kieran Maguire made a terrific stop, the ball trickled towards the line and just when it seemed a Wellington player was going to poke it in, Ally Evans dived in to nick it away and out for a corner. It was certainly a let-off for Rathfriland, who held on to claim the victory and rise to seventh in the league table.