Ballymena United 0
Glenavon 2
League (NIFL Premiership)

Match Report

Ballymena United ended 2024 in hugely disappointing fashion as they fell to a fifth straight home league defeat and had two men sent off in a 2-0 loss to Glenavon at The Showgrounds on Monday night.

Prior to kick-off on Warden Street, the ground came together along with the rest of the Irish League for a minute's silence in memory of Cliftonville defender Michael Newberry, who tragically passed away today aged just twenty-seven. United also remembered Tommy Patterson, a familiar face for decades as a lifelong Sky Blue, who sadly passed away over Christmas.

The Braidmen made three changes to the side that picked up a point in Coleraine on Boxing Day, as Ben Kennedy, Josh Carson and Andy Scott all came straight back in from suspension.

To the action and on a pitch still struggling to recover from recent bad weather, the first half was a fairly difficult watch all round with little by way of chances. The first opening that came was by far the best of the half when Alex Gawne couldn't have come closer to putting the hosts ahead. Scott drove forward down the right hand side and fizzed a low ball across the box which fell to Gawne at the back post and whilst he possibly should've score, Mark Byrne made a superb stop.

Glenavon's first effort wasn't long after the Gawne chance, as James Doona's bending attempt from wide right flew narrowly wide of the far post, but after that came a really quiet half an hour or so, with neither team able to get close to threatening either 'keeper in that time. In the final ten minutes of the half, the Lurgan Blues tried their luck twice with speculative efforts from distance, in an attempt to get something to happen. First, Michael O'Connor's well hit half volley looked good but dipped just over, before Niall Quinn's free kick was powered well over, as a quiet half predictably ended scoreless.

Oisin Devlin looked to be hobbling as he made his way off at half time and he didn't appear for the second half as he was replaced by a returning Kym Nelson, who went to left back, allowing Carson to vacate that unfamiliar position and move back into midfield.

Ballymena were a little slow out in the second period, as they continued to struggle to get any real hold of the ball, and ten minutes in Glenavon took the lead in a really messy goal. Stephen O'Donnell fluffed his lines dealing with a long ball which then fell to O'Connor who slipped in Peter Campbell and although Sean O'Neill got a strong hand on the shot, it somehow squeezed its way in.

Two minutes after falling behind, the Sky Blues felt they should've had the opportunity to go level when Kennedy went down in the box under the challenge of Len O'Sullivan, but referee Shane McGonigle said no penalty, much to the bemusement of many in home colours. Shortly afterwards came a rare Ballymena effort towards goal, but even then it was from way out as Scott tried his luck with only himself up the pitch, with his hooked shot flying wide.

With twenty-three minutes to go, whilst Ballymena weren't doing much they were still in the game, but that would change when Glenavon were awarded what appeared to be a baffling penalty kick. Inside the box Nelson slid to cleanly take the ball away from O'Connor, but incredibly the officials felt Nelson had took the man first, leaving everyone of sky blue persuasion perplexed. Jim Ervin, whilst presumably trying to portray the thoughts of many, saw a straight red card to see him exit the dugout and whilst O'Neill stood tall to save the resulting David McDaid spot kick, the forward got another bite at the cherry and headed home seconds later when O'Connor found him from the rebound.

Many surely worried where one Ballymena goal might come from given their recent struggles at home, but two seemed the most uphill of tasks and still as nothing came, O'Neill got down to deny Matthew Snoddy from making it three.

With the calendar year ending on a sour note for the Braidmen, there was still time in the final minutes for matters to be made worse as for the second time in three games, Ballymena were reduced to nine men. On eighty-four minutes, Sean Brown received a straight red card for a poor challenge on O'Sullivan in front of the Glenavon bench. Six minutes later Nelson, who had right to argue his first booking in the penalty incident, could have no complaints as he picked up the most needless of second yellows, to compound Ballymena's worrying disciplinary record.

With the game up and United two men down, O'Neill made another good stop in the last knockings to keep out Jamie Doran, but that was it for the night and for a rollercoaster of a 2024, but in the year's final act, whilst United may fairly question actions out of their own control, it's difficult to find any positives from another concerning home showing.

Match report written by Philip McPeake (www.ballymenaunitedfc.com)