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.
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.
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