We return home tomorrow afternoon as the Comrades welcome Ards to Dixon Park in our next Lough 41 Championship fixture.

Match Info

When: Saturday 18^th December – Kick-Off 3:00pm

Where: Dixon Park

What: Lough 41 Championship

Entry: Pay at the gate – £8 (Adult) / £5 (Concession)

Match Sponsor – Ballyclare Radiator Services

Ball Sponsor – Country Diner Catering

The Opponents

Ards currently occupy 6^th spot in the Lough 41 Championship. Last week, they travelled to Blanchflower Park where they were defeated 2-1 by HW Welders. Scott Davidson opened the scoring for the Welders on 28 minutes when, on the counter, he got on the end of a low driven ball across the box to smash the finish past Brian Neeson. The Welders then doubled their advantage early in the second through substitute Matthew Henry after Davidson found him in space inside the area to beat Neeson at the near post. Ards managed to pull one back on 78 minutes after Salou Jallow found Paddy Cafolla on the edge of the area who then turned and sent a clinical strike past Ben McCauley from 12 yards, but the Welders done enough to hang on to all 3 points.

The Comrades

Two goals midway through the second half saw Dergview defeat Ballyclare Comrades at Darragh Park last week. Scoreless at the break, the Comrades came close to open the scoring on a number of occasions. Ciaran Heggarty flashed a header just wide early on before turning provider to tee up Gary Donnelly to send a 20-yard effort the wrong side of the target. Heggarty continued to be a threat, with another header coming from a Lee McCune cross while, early in the second half, he twice tested Dergview keeper Alan Buchanan albeit with no success. However, that all counted for nothing on 67 minutes when the home side moved in front courtesy of Cathal Farren’s successfully converted spot-kick. Then, just six minutes after that, it was 2-0 after a good team move teed Matthew Kirk up to beat Richard Purcell with a sublime finish. The result sees the Comrades drop to 8^th position in the Lough 41 Championship for the first time this season. Speaking on tomorrow’s fixture, Paul Harbinson is looking forward to “getting back home again and feeling the buzz of our hometown, feeling the buzz of our home community. We’re all in this together and we will get there.”

Last Time Out

The last time these two sides met. Ards stormed to a comprehensive 3-0 victory at Clandeboye Park back in September. Ards opened the scoring on the half-hour mark when a ball played into the box wasn’t cleared by the Comrades and fell to Cafolla who drilled an excellent finish into the net from the edge of the box. On 42 minutes, the hosts doubled their lead; a well-worked move opened up the Comrades defence and created the chance for Arthurs to blast an unstoppable finish past Jack Ferguson from 16 yards. Ards finished off a deserved win with another goal late in the game. Comrades were exposed by a quick break up-field which beat the offside trap and the ball was played low into the box by Jallow, setting up McCurry to finish from 10 yards.