Incredible comeback earns Cloney vital derby win

Donacloney 5

Waringstown 4

DONACLONEY entertained derby rivals Waringstown on Saturday past and put in a Jekyll and Hyde performance on the way to securing their fourth league victory in a row.

Waringstown played the first half with a strong wind in their backs and took full advantage of the conditions. Cloney never settled and never created anything of note during the period of play. In fact, they put in their worst 45 minutes performance for the last number of seasons.

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Waringstown went into the break with a four goal advantage, leaving Cloney shell shocked. They got their first when indecisive defending saw the Cloney opened up and the forward was left with a free header to power the ball past Campbell in the Cloney goals.

The visitors increased their lead when they were awarded a penalty, which was confidently dispatched.

Things continued to go from bad to worse as two blunders led to Waringstown third and fourth goals. Campbell took his eye of the ball from a corner and the evergreen Noel Bibb gleefully accepted the unexpected opportunity.

The fourth come from a defensive clearance from deep inside the Waringstown half, carried by the wind and the hapless Campbell misjudged the flight, this coupled with an unfortunate slip seeing the ball bounce over the floored stranded custodian.

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Cloney come in at halftime to a seething team talk from manager Knox and this seemed to give them the impetus to lift their game in the second period.

With the wind dying down Cloney lost the advantage that their rivals had in the first half but within the first five minutes they eventually got onto the score sheet. A Darren Brooker corner was met by a Steven Leckey header to start the comeback.

Campbell then redeemed himself with a save soon after when two Waringstown forwards broke through and the keeper coming out on top in the two on one situation.

Soon after Knox made a tactical change to go from a 4-4-2 to a more attacking 3-4-3 and this seemed to provide the impetus they required.

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It was Knox himself who grabbed the second shortly after entering the game as a sub. He cut inside two men and chipped the keeper from 25 yards.

Cloney soon boosted their chances as they too received a bit of luck when they too were awarded a penalty. A Chris Shields cross was blocked by what the ref adjudged to be a Waringstown hand. Kyle Scott stepped up and saw his initial effort saved, but he was the quickest to react to scuff home the rebound.

Cloney remarkably pulled level as another Brooker corner was bundled home by leading scorer Aaron Chambers and the same man completed the scoring with 10 minutes left. He was on hand to volley home from close range after Shields chased down a seemingly lost cause and whipped in a dangerous cross.

• Donacloney Seconds grabbed only their second victory in a tough first season. They grabbed a superb 2-0 victory away to Craigavon City Reserves. The goals scorers were captain Aaron McMullen and Kyle McCreery.