We travel to Ferney Park this afternoon to take on Ballinamallard United in our next Lough 41 Championship fixture.

Match Info

When: Saturday 11^th February – Kick-Off 3:00pm

Where: Ferney Park

What: Lough 41 Championship

Entry: Pay at the gate

The Opponents

Ballinamallard United picked up the North-West Senior Cup during the week. The Mallards celebrated a 4-1 win against a young Coleraine side at The Showgrounds as a hat-trick from Patrick Ferry eased Harry McConkey’s side to victory. The Championship side would find themselves 3-0 up at the break as Ferry latched onto a cross from Nick Palmer’s cross, before the striker seized upon poor defending to double his tally just after the half-hour mark. Caolan McAleer was also on the scoresheet for the visitors as he let fly from distance and the tie was put beyond doubt as Ferry headed home from McAleer’s corner kick in the second-half. There would be some late joy for the Bannsiders as Eamon Fyfe netted a late consolation for the hosts with a cracking strike from distance. The success marks a second triumph for the Mallards in the competition and the perfect tonic after losing last year’s decider to Dergview.

The Comrades

A single goal was enough to see Comrades advance to the last eight of Irish Cup with a win over Institute at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium last week. The hosts started the stronger of the teams and piled on early pressure. Inside three minutes they came close when McFeely skipped past a challenge and shot just wide of the target from the edge of the area. Gradually Comrades began to get a foothold in the game. On 13 minutes Alan McMurtry got forward to run onto a ball laid into his path by Calvin McCurry, but his first-time shot from 20 yards effort rose over the bar. Stephen Small’s side looked a different proposition in the second half and were giving the hosts plenty to worry about. The deadlock was broken on 58 minutes when Cillin Gilmour whipped the ball in with pace from a free kick taken just outside the left edge of the box, and it was met by a perfectly flicked header by Cónal McGrandles which flew past the ‘keeper and into the roof of the net. The visitors saw the remainder of the game out to seal a win deserved on their second half performance.

Last Time Out

The last time these two sides met in November, ten-man Ballinamallard United battled back to earn a draw from Ballyclare Comrades’ visit to Ferney Park. The visitors moved in front after eight minutes when, following a good team move also involving Calvin McCurry and Liam Hassin, Gary Donnelly curled an effort from 20 yards into the net past keeper Michael Lynch. The Mallards went a man down a few minutes from the end of the first half when Shane McGinty was sent-off following an altercation with Donnelly. But Harry McConkey’s side recovered to level just before the hour after John Edgar got on the end of a good cross to beat Declan Breen with a bullet header.