Provisional Fixture list
29 August - Limavady -Home
1 September- Lisburn -Away
8 September- Ridgeway Rovers -Home
15 September- Dungannon -Youth Away
22 September- Sion Swifts- Home
29 September- St Oliver Plunkett- Away
6 October- Lisburn -Home
13 October- Magherafelt Sky Blues- Away
20 October- Linfield- Home
27 October- Carninny - Home
3 November- Cliftonville- Away
10 November- Limavady - Away
17 November- Ridgeway Rovers - Away
24 November- Derry Colts- Home
Niall Owens 16
Jake Irvine 8
Jake Browne 9
Ryan Keaney 6
Michael Gallagher 7
Alex Holder 6
Callum Jones 4
Curtis Coalter 4
Joshua Toal 4
Daire Bradley 1
Darragh McGrath 1
Brandon Horan 1
Pearse McNabb 1
Ballinamallard Under 12s enjoyed a superb 6-2 victory over Carniny on Saturday at Ferney Park.
The young Mallards played some scintillating stuff on the slick Ferney park surface and fully deserved their victory.
It took the home side only two minutes before they took the lead. Callum Jones slid a superb ball through for Niall Owens who chipped the goalkeeper from 30 yards to open the scoring.
Owens soon doubled the Mallards lead only moments later. He calmly sidefooted home after a great break down the left.
The tricky winger was having a superb game down the left and he earned his side a penalty after another break down the left.
Unfortunately Callum Jones saw his effort well saved and the rebound ricocheted off the crossbar.
Despite the setback the Mallards continued to play some superb football. Jones crossed for Gallagher to hammer home inside the box to make it three.
The back four of Mahon, Smyth, Crawford and Kinnear were rarely troubled throughout the early stages.
Nonetheless Carniny grabbed a goal back. A long range free kick was rocketed into the top corner to make it 3-1.
The next goal in the game was going to prove to be vital and five minutes after the break Curtis Coalter slotted home with his first touch.
The next goal was a simply breath-taking counter attack. Holder won the ball back and played a wonderful one two with Owens before firing an unstoppable effort into the top corner of the net. A goal that certainly would have not been out of place in the Irish Premier League!
Carniny responded well and despite Brownlee making a stunning reflex save, the Carniny striker slotted home to leave it 6-2.
Owens was to have the final say and he grabbed his 16th goal of the season . Jones who once again was superb in the centre of the park, slid a wonderful ball through to Owens who rounded the keeper and slotted home to leave it 6-2 to the home side.
This was the sort of performance that the young Mallards are extremely capable of and they will now look forward to well deserved rest before starting with their Foyle Cup preparations.
IT was another frustrating afternoon for the Ballinamallard Under 12s in the quarter final of the National League Cup.
The Mallards lost out by 2-1 to Sion Swifts on an atrocious Melvin Park surface.
The first half was a gritty affair with the Mallards on top for the majority of the opening stages. The midfield trio of Slevin, Holder and Irvine were increasingly influential but the Mallards were unable to break down the Sion defence. Slevin was extremely impressive with his simple passing and strength in the tackle.
Niall Owens was making several penetrating runs down the left and was causing the Sion rearguard a lot of problems.
The best chance of the half fell to Joshua Toal who saw his long-range free kick go agonisingly wide.
It was a much-improved Mallards performance and they were rewarded for their hard work in the early stages of the second half.
The back four of Smyth, Toal, Kinnear and McNabb defended resolutely and were committed to the cause.
Owens, not for the first time, was crudely chopped down, Josh Toal fired a free kick in.
Sion attempted to clear their lines but Jake Browne pounced on the ball and fired home to give the young Mallards the lead.
It could have been two nil only moments later. Jones whipped in a superb corner and Owens saw his volley hammer off the bar much to the relief of the boisterous home support.
However, the home side were proving dangerous on the break and only for the woodwork and the goalkeeping of Joshua Brownlee, they could have been level.
Lady luck is simply not smiling at this hard working bunch of Mallards. The home side levelled from a suspiciously looking offside goal with only minutes remaining.
A number of questionable refereeing decisions did not go to the dedicated away side, as the partisan home crowd played their part in the tie.
The tie was forced into extra time and the home side grabbed the only goal of the twenty extra minutes. A poor decision from the referee to give a free kick lead to a scramble in the box and Sion celebrated scoring a second.
Despite throwing everything at the Sion defence, the Mallards were unable to equalise.
There was obvious disappointment from the young Mallards at the final whistle. However, the lessons they have learnt from this season will leave them in good stead for next season.
Ballinamallard Under 12s crashed out of the NIBFA Cup away to Ballymena last weekend. The young Mallards produced a lacklustre performance and were easily defeated a by a much hungrier Ballymena side.
The opening stages were a largely cagey affair as neither side could get into any real rhythm. Ballinamallard were getting joy down the flanks early on as Owens and McGrath attempted to move forward with pace.
In what was probably their best spell of the game, the Mallards thought they had grabbed the lead. Jake Browne played a superb through ball to Michael Gallagher who slotted home. Much to the amazement of the away support and backroom staff the referee blew for offside.
The away side never recovered from this setback and they were dealt a further blow as Niall Owens and Jake Irvine clashed heads in an aerial challenge. Owens was forced off for the remainder of the half.
Manager Sam Gamble knew that his side were not performing to the best of their ability and they were told to start the second half with enthusiasm and determination.
However, his young charges failed to listen to his advice as Ballymena scored within seconds of the restart. A long punt forward was not dealt with by the usually solid Mallards rearguard and the home striker slammed home.
This was a huge blow to the away side and they never recovered from going behind. The lack of fight and passion was hugely disappointing in the second half.
Ballymena scored a second when they scrambled home from a corner.
The Mallards only started to play in the final five minutes of the tie as the introduction of Kinnear, Slevin and Coalter added some much needed fight to the side.
It was just going to be one of those days for the away side when they were denied a stonewall penalty. Owens, who recovered from a nasty bump to the head, bamboozled the away defence and was clattered into in the box. Amazingly, the referee, who had his hand out for a penalty kick, played advantage and the chance was lost.
Despite the poor surface and some controversial decisions going against them, the 12s never really got started. The grit, determination and fighting spirit of the first few months of the season as all but disappeared. Some major changes will be made in the starting eleven if there is no immediate change.
The Mallards have a free weekend now and will start preparing for their League Cup quarter final against Sion Swifts.
Ballinamallard Youth produced a stunning performance in their penultimate league game as they defeated local rivals Dungannon.
Played under the temperamental floodlights at the Joe McAree Junior Stadium, the Mallards claimed two quick fire first half goals to claim a 2-0 victory.
The early stages of the tie were dominated by the away side, as the midfield trio of Holder, Irvine and Browne commanded proceedings.
However, Dungannon were always proving strong on the break and Nathan Noble in the Mallards goal made a tremendous reflex save to keep the scores level.
The Mallards soon grabbed a deserved lead when Irvine combined well with Holder. The ball soon made its way to McGrath who played a superb through ball to Gallagher.
The centre forward twisted and turned and shot on goal. The Dungannon netminder could only parry the ball to Jake Browne who lashed home.
It was soon 2-0 to the away side when Niall Owens won a free kick on the left. Callum Jones whipped in a superb free kick. The keeper spilled the ball at the feet of Joshua Toal who hammered the ball high into the net.
Dungannon were desperately trying to find a way back into the game but they found keeper Noble in fine form.
The back four of Kinnear, Smyth, Toal and Jones were winning their battles in defence.
Prior to the half time interval, the Dungannon floodlights went off and the game was delayed until the lights could be restored.
The second half was an uneventful affair as the floodlights continued to flicker on and off.
Nonetheless the Mallards continued to defend resolutely and kept Dungannon at bay.
Indeed, the Mallards should have furthered their lead as Toal saw his effort ricochet off the post.
Gallagher also saw his effort tipped round the post and Keaney was unlucky to see his effort scrambled off the line.
This was the sort of performance that the young Mallards are capable of. Their last league game is against Derry Colts and the management team of Sam and Dessie Gamble will be hoping for another impressive team performance.
Cavan Monaghan Youth League (holders)
Arklow Town
Armagh City
Ballinamallard United
Ballymoney United
Ballyraine Kilmacrennan
Bertie Peacock Youth League
Coleraine FC
Derry & District Youth League
Donegal Schoolboys Academy
Donegal Colts
Dungiven Celtic
Finn Harps
Glentoran FC
Hearts FC
Inishowen Youth League
Limavady United
Maiden City Academy
NECSL
Newhill FC
Info on matchesUnder 12 tournament - 20 teams will compete in 5 groups of 4 teams, playing each other once Tuesday - Thursday. The 5 group winners and 3 best runnersup will play in Quarter Finals on Friday morning and the Semi Finals then follow Friday evening. All other teams will play in Plate, Rosebowl or Shield semi finals on Friday, depending on final position. All teams in Plate, Rosebowl or Shield play 5 games Tuesday - Saturday and the teams in Cup play 6 games over the same time period.
RSS Feed