U13s blitz secures Bannister Bowl win

Sullivan Upper 0

A TERRIFIC first half hat trick from pacey Chris Sawyers was the beginning of a polished performance against what most thought was a tricky cup clash against the lads from Hollywood.

The smart skills of Craig Kennedy caused Sullivan a real headache at the back and with two fine reverse stick crosses from Sawyers, the Academy took the lead.

This was succeeded by a fine follow up reverse smash from Sam Farson, a forward in real form at present. The ever-influential Johnny McKee showed his prowess, setting up Sawyers for his third before deftly laying off at the back post for Farson's second in 20 minutes.

Any Sullivan threat was capably dealt with by the low tackling and tricky stick skills of Knox, and he and Reid battled fiercely with Sullivan to the delight of the Banbridge faithful. The distribution from Hurst and Rowe at times was excellent, finding quickly the movement of Robert Scott and Kennedy in particular by splitting the two centre backs of Sullivan.

Armstrong too alongside Watt snuffed out a peppering of chances before a telling pass allowed Robert Scott to fire home the Academy's sixth on half time.

The introduction of Luke McAnespie and Scott Donnelly added stealth and pace to the forward unit and a quicker shot could have grabbed McAnespie his first of the season. The goalkeeping side rotated with the introduction of Adair and Skillen, and Aled McCluskey too made his mark by grabbing the seventh with an ugly shot from top circle.

To the delight of McKee and his team, the captain ended off a fine performance by deflecting a great pass from team-mate McCluskey to allow them their way into the quarter final.

The squad, sponsored by the Belmont Hotel, now face a solid Kilkeel side at their patch on Friday March 5 at 11am. Good luck to all involved!