A youthful Downpatrick side caused the current champions plenty of problems but in the end experience shone through, click on the link below to read more…
Saturday 26th November – NADAFL Premier Division
Downpatrick Athletic 1 v Ballyvea FC 3
Downpatrick seconds welcomed the current league champions to Dunleath on Saturday afternoon and the final score could have been very different if the hosts had have brought their shooting boots. Downpatrick had two glorious opportunities in the opening ten minutes but striker Sean McMahon failed to find the back of the net.
Then on ten minutes Downpatrick suffered a sucker punch when Ballyvea used their experience to score the opening goal. The visitors caught Downpatrick on the counter attack and a perfect through ball and their striker slid the ball under the advancing Ronan Holland in the Downpatrick nets. Credit to Downpatrick they continued to look for an equaliser for the remainder of the half but just couldn’t find that decisive touch.
Half Time: Downpatrick Athletic 0 v Ballyvea FC 1
Early in the second half Ballyvea doubled their advantage with a well worked goal which Holland could do little about in the Downpatrick nets. Downpatrick continued to apply pressure on the Ballyvea defence with some neat play and just after the hour mark they pulled a goal back. Good work down the right between Barry Fitzsimons and Stephen Douglas saw the ball played into the box to Sam Kinnear. The winger saw his shot deflected into the net by Sean McMahon.
Downpatrick sensed that they had the chance to get back on level terms with the visitors and started to put Ballyvea under pressure but to no avail. Then with the game entering the final stages Ballyvea secured all three points as the broke up another Downpatrick attack and quickly countered attacked to score their third goal.
Downpatrick: 1) R Holland 2) C Logue 3) C Kerr 4) B Fitzsimons 5) S Douglas 6) T Bell 7) A McCoubrey 8) J Hill 9) S Kinnear 10) S McMahon 11) J Healy 12) M Murphy 14) G Douglas 15) B Campbell