Fern Mc Costigan: December 2018

Monday, December 31, 2018

Recap of the last match week in the Danske Banke Premiership

Just by a couple of points the Ballymena United Boys are hanging on the overall table, as the Linfield Blues, Crusaders winning their respective matches, contrary to fourth place Glenavon tying its game.

In addition to the list the likes of Institute, Coleraine moving up the table and suddenly for the Reds back-to-back losses, still this weekend marked the last match week of 2018.

Starting in Solitude Park, the visiting Linfield Blues got the best of the locals suddenly suffering two consecutive losses, with the Blues scores from Jordan Stewart 39’ and Niall Quinn 47’ for the win.

Cliftonville 0, Linfield 2

In the Oval the local the visiting and defending league champions Crusaders got a valuable result on the road in another edition of the Belfast Derby with the Crues notable result these started on their way up the table.

With one goal and a defensive, gem of a game the lads of Stephen Baxter got another win and moving up on the table and looking forward to claim the top, a lone goal on injury time by David Cushley 90+1.

Glentoran 0, Crusaders 1

In Mourneview the attendees exposed to a goal fest staged by the local Glenavon and streaking Institute sharing the spoils and points as the local Lurgan Blues and visiting Stute lately playing a one of a kind football.

For the local Mourneview Blues scorers were Rhys Marshall double on the 35’ and 43’ along with Andrew Mitchell 78’, on the visiting side Stephen Curry 55’, Michael McCrudden 59’ and Colm McLaughlin 67’.

Glenavon 3, Institute 3

In Stangmore Park, the local Swifts gave in to an inspired Ards looking forward to level their campaign and looking forward to salvage the remainder of the campaign and see the light of another day in the NIFL.

The visiting Reds & Blues came ready to rock this town with a goal rout and seeing a brilliant performance by Eamon McAllister 10’ and 90’ plus Mark Kelly 73’ to net three valuable points.

Dungannon 0, Ards 3

In Milltown the local Point got an upset at home from a hard-hitting Coleraine suddenly playing a top-notch football and moving on up the overall table and within 14 points of the league leader.

With a lone goal from Jamie McGonigle in the 76’ minute, the Bannsiders continue with their run with perfection and looking forward to reach the top.

Warrenpoint Town 0, Coleraine 1

In the Showgrounds of Ballymena United, the league leader Sky Blues hosted the likes of struggling and battling with relegation Newry City, visiting Country Antrim looking for the upset but these came short.

In the end the local Ballymena United got the win to close the year on the top, with goals from Cathair Friel 55’, Ryan Mayse 67’ and Adam Lecky 82’ for City scoring Mark McCabe 64’.

Ballymena United 3, Newry City 1

Happy New Year 2019!

Photos Credit and Property of © @INPHO Stephen Hamilton, Freddie Parkinson, Brian Little, Jonathan Porter 2018

Manchester United finding its game identity under Gunnar Solksjaer

Manchester United 4, Bournemouth 1

Old Trafford, Manchester

Finally, the day came when this squad found its game, in its star-studded roster, and initial eleven finally started playing as a team, this in part thanks to the arrival of their savior Ole Gunner Solksjaer.

With a goal rout over Bournemouth and Paul Pogba being its game hero with a couple of goals, the Red Devils are suddenly seeing a revival in their game and seeing a total unity in the field.

That is the case ever since manager Solksjaer took the helm as an interim of the Trafford side, inheriting a divided dressing room and with several players considered tops playing like these were still in the academy.

The job did not look enticing or motivating at all for the former Manu great that has inscribed his name in glory since his playing days and now he is on the crusade to turn things around in the Theater of Dreams.

Suddenly the likes of Paul Pogba is seeing a revival in his game and playing like a that expensive superstar, Romelu Lukaku finding his scoring drive and the whole squad playing like these were involved on a championship run.

That is the United I am familiar with playing with all the passion for a multimillion-payroll roster that in this campaign was exposing in its game the conflict within them and their former Boss Mou, who lately his winning drive is becoming a conflict stricken one.

As I recall in one of Cesar Luis Menotti the manager that gave Argentina National Team its first World Cup back in 1978, the mystic of success in any team is its unity and spite of having the best players this essential ingredient missing will not deliver anything.

However many state that these recent streak of victories over so called troublesome squads, yesterday against Bournemouth these are no minnows or playing like such as Eddie Howe and company can be somehow seen as all around spoilers.

Now a chap can turn things around if he gets the nod for coming and manage at Old Trafford, as manager Howe considered as another promising great manager to take over a squad of the likes of Manu, Chelsea, City or Liverpool.

Still this is curtain time for Ole Gunner Solksjaer currently lifting his former team of his glory days into an all-around competitor winning in its last outing and adding three consecutive wins this somehow is a confidence booster for a squad suddenly submerged in misery.

So far, wins against Cardiff City, Huddersfield and yesterday against Bournemouth, these three squads are no walks in the park as the first ones fighting of their permanency in the end they can be a handful as well.

As Paul Pobga started the fireworks in the 5’ and 33’ with assists from Marcus Rashford and Ander Herrera, then Marcus Rashford score in the 45’ with Anthony Martial assit and Romelu Lukaku in the 72’ via Paul Pogba.

In this match with ten men left after Eric Bailly red card, in the end Manu defensive game too stingy for the visiting Cherries and raising to another win as well seeing how one of its aces finally started getting their old momentum back.

Photos Credit and Property of © Copyright Premier League. com 2018

Sunday, December 30, 2018

Burnley confidence back with a valuable win over the Hammers

Burnley 2, West Ham United 0

Turf Moor Stadium, Burnley

Finally, a much-needed win for Burnley, giving a reason for manager Sean Dyche to start getting a boost of confidence for his squad that after getting a win over a heavily favorite West Ham United.

With a campaign that these Clarets are having, today win came as a good set of news for the locals in their last game of this 2018 that for sure will give them that needed positivism they were lacking in the campaign.

Contrary to last edition of Premiership when the Clarets showed a new type of football with an all-around ambition and improvement in a finish that earned them a European positon that unfortunately these left in the early stages.

However, in this campaign injuries and a lack of good game and strategies not being to connect with Sean Dyche initial elevens in the course of this campaign, today playing a streaking Hammer side the possibilities of a win were very vague.

Not is written and in spite of a club coming labeled as favorites, in the case of the Irons coming short with some of their notable players on the DL, this match in the end became a little even for both sides.

If an initial eleven today came all inspired and had all the initiative were the locals BFC, but in today’s match manager Dyche opted to go for a veteran of many battles in Tom Heaton, leaving Joe Hart the former Iron on the bench.

Suddenly the defensive boost this squad needed was in this veteran of many battles that in the end he came ahead in this match with a clean sheet and denying the Hammers strikers any liberties to display the game these have been playing lately.

With the Clarets, defensive game seeing an inspiration after their goalkeeper making game saving saves that possibly could been a score and their veteran was as they state on the ball, making important plays that in the end paid off.

After some tries by the visitors, suddenly the locals with a nice play like these were in practice when Burnley Ashley Barnes effectively deciphering a play and a placing the ball on Chris Wood feet to score the local’s first goal on the 15’ minute.

A play that Heaton started, sending the ball to midfield, culminating from Barnes from more than midfield, and hitting target for the game first goal in an empathic finish as the announcer described this play.

Not even nineteen minutes passed by when the locals once again were hard at work looking for the second score and what could been the go ahead tally in the end and a moment came in a series of rebounds that the Clarets never gave up.

This play brought the second goal of the match when Ashley Westwood passing to Dwight McNeil in the 34’ this second score of the locals was the final sentence of this match well dominated by an inspired BFC.

For goalkeeper Tom Heaton without any activity for 476 days this lad name sound of a fictional history character, today he showed off his skills and inspiring his backfield to raise to the occasion and look at the results.

Saturday, December 29, 2018

These Wolves becoming the big six spoilers

Tottenham 1, Wolverhampton 3

Wembley Stadium, London

After a celebrated promotion to the big circuit of Premiership, for Wolves manager Nuno Espiritu Santo he was realistic about the campaign his squad was about to perform with a series of multiple challenges to tackle.

With many squads after their promotion, these have their share of struggles, many of these ends up going down, still some o stage a sort of revival, and stay put on the top circuit.

Among one of them was to maintain his side above the bottom three spots that leads any of the squads in it to the abyss of relegation and a not so desired return to Championship.

However, for these hard fighting Wanderers so far situated above the top ten spots in the overall table situated in seventh place with 29 points, as many in Premiership circles calling them giant killers.

Today by winning on the road in always tough to play Wembley Stadium the temporary home of the hot streaking Spurs, touted by many as the ones to challenge the Liverpool Reds in the remaining of the campaign by the amazing football displayed.

With the Wolves not being at times too consistent still taken points away from both Manchester squads and Arsenal and later beating London giants Chelsea and today the Spurs, this tell you of the way this squad is playing one serious football.

In the start of this campaign for manager Espiritu Santo struggles too obvious for a debutante in the big circuit that these left for quite some time and in spite of making a return many thought that their troubles were to start after earning a direct promotion.

As these Wolves displaying character and total control of their game and not decimating themselves after being down on the canvas and seeing how a dominant Lilywhite squad was in total control in the first half.

For the local Spurs by opening the scoreboard early in the 22’ minute when their most lethal of combinations from Heung Son- Min assisting to a wide-open Harry Kane to send the whole of the colossus of London Town into frenzy.

Still this match had a second half and the Spurs had to sustain the visitor’s pressure and perseverance that in the end exposed fatigue is playing a fatal role in several squads involved in Champions League as the case of Tottenham.

As in, the ending minutes of this match Wolverhampton a squad not known to have deep pockets before the campaign to build up a contender, in the end became the spoiler and upsetting the Lilywhites who before this match a perfect run.

The equalizer came in the 72’ minute when Joao Moutinho found a wide-open Willy Boly with a header injected a new energy to his Wolves, the second score came from Raul Jiménez 83’ from Ivan Cavaleiro pass.

Four minutes later the dominance and the way this match was turn around by the visitors when another combination of Matt Doherty to Heider Costa in the 87’ minute sentenced the match in favor of the spoiling Wolverhampton Boys.