Clarence Cup First Round

Henderson Hat Trick Sinks Saints

Saintfield Utd  1  :  3  Comber Rec 

Noel Spence reports 

Comber Rec progressed to the second round of the Clarence Cup on Saturday in a game sponsored by David McKibbin and Movielink of Comber. It should have been a comfortable win over Saintfield Utd, bearing in mind that, thanks to a splendid Michael Henderson treble, Rec were 3-0 ahead at the end of a first half they had bossed right from the opening whistle.  Anyone assuming at that point, however, that the game was done and dusted had reckoned neither with the infamous Comber Rec Self-Destruct button, nor with the fighting spirit of a home team that gave an excellent account of itself in the second period.

Rec were without the unfortunate Ryan Oliver who has broken a leg and will be out for the rest of the season. How they are going to miss his power and pace in attack! Also absent from the line-up were Neil Magowan and Brent Reid and the elusive Gareth Larmour, so Gary Canmore and Rab McMillan were included in the eleven who started on a wet and very heavy playing surface.

The visitors went on the offensive from the kick-off, with Henderson putting himself about on the right side and linking well with Ryan Johnston. With only a couple of minutes played a Henderson first time ground shot was deflected off a defender but fortunately for the Saints glanced straight to keeper Young.

Gillies was blown up just a yard offside from a nicely played Leckey ball in Saintfield’s first forward move, but it was Comber who sustained an offensive with early passing down both flanks, fast cross balls, and a refreshing eagerness to shoot.

The pressure brought rewards as early as the 8th minute. Peter Kelly’s ball into the area from the right was half cleared to the other wing, and when Johnson sent back a fine centre from near the left flag, Henderson guided a neat little header just inside the base of the left post into the corner of the net. The goal was a great advertisement for the virtues of early delivery and quickness to the half chance.

Kelly was involved again a few minutes later, this time in defensive fashion, when Morrow’s throw-in was headed on target and the Rec defender headed off his goal line.

On the quarter hour keeper Young had to look lively to punch clear a lovely Henderson effort hooked into the danger area, and a minute later Rec should have been two goals ahead. Jason Mooney’s goal kick bounced over the last defender leaving Kevin McClory with only the keeper to beat from close distance, but he swung his leg, missed the ball completely, and the chance was gone.

McClory did better soon afterwards with a sweet centre from the left sideline that Henderson headed high and wide, and a Joe Jeffreys header went the same way midway through the half from a beautifully delivered Kyle McQuillan corner from the right.

On the half hour Mooney was relieved to see a Robertson 30 yard attempt from the right touchline drop just over his crossbar. The big Rec keeper was causing repeated problems for the home defence with his long goal kicks, one of which ten minutes from the break led to White injuring himself in desperation to deal with it. A defence splitting McQuillan through ball put McClory through on goal, but his first touch let him down and it seemed that Rec would have to settle for just a single goal lead from a half they had dominated. With just five minutes left on the watch, Johnston followed up a no-hope ball on the right, controlled it at the corner flag, and somehow squared it across into the box, where the predatory Henderson met it at the near post and rifled his shot low into the net. It was a striker’s goal, but made possible by the sheer determination of Johnston, who was later to be given the Man of the Match award. Exactly two minutes later the move was replicated on the left side, but with a different style of finish. Jeffrey chased a ball down and got over his cross which found Henderson with his back to goal. He cleverly turned his man and unleashed a left foot chip shot from the edge of the area that caught the keeper napping and dropped over his head into the net.

Hat Trick hero Henderson

Incredibly Henderson could have had another goal just before the whistle when he got on the end of a sublime McQuillan centre from the left only to see his first time volley blocked in the goalmouth.

Rec were easily ahead by dint of simple, no-nonsense football, with no chances taken at the back, early movement of the ball in midfield, and aggressive testing of the keeper in attack. Why this formula was abandoned in the second period is hard to fathom. Rec changed their style of play to such an extent that not only did Saintfield get into the match, they controlled it for long periods and clearly won it on points.

Whether through complacency or mistaken sense of superiority, Rec chose to forsake the simple football that had overwhelmed their opponents for the first forty five minutes. Now it was extra touches, more time wanted on the ball, trying to run with it and beat men in sticky conditions, losing possession in dangerous positions, and refusing to hack the ball away early out of defence.

Only a superbly timed Kelly tackle to deny Johnny Wallace prevented Saintfield pulling a goal back with only four minutes gone in the second half, and a minute later Kelly was at hand again to head over his crossbar following a throw in that wasn’t cleared first time.

Rec had lost midfield control, with Henderson now missing the support he had fed on so profitably early in the game. In the 55th minute a Leckey cross ground ball was pushed out by Mooney and it needed a last gasp Jeffreys intervention to steal the ball off an attacker’s toe.

Suddenly Saintfield could see a way back into the contest, their confidence boosted by Rec’s indecision at the back and repeated over-running on the ball and consequent loss of it in midfield in attempts to take on opponents.

Henderson put McClory through with a delightful ball in the 65th minute but the young player was having one of those days when his touch was missing and he miskicked in front of goal.

Exactly on the half hour of the second period Saintfield got the goal their persistence deserved, but it came about from over elaborate Rec defence, the player in question having two or more opportunities to thump the ball to safety, but declining to do so until he was closed down so that the eventual attempted clearance was blocked, spun into the box, and Leckey finished with clinical precision past Mooney from 12 yards.

The introduction of three substitutes for Rec reflected the anxiety on the line as Saintfield continued to look the more likely. Johnston did well to set up a shooting chance for himself ten minutes from time, but pulled his drive well wide, and at the other end Saints clamoured for a penalty when Mooney blocked an attacker on the bye line.

The game ended with McQuillan showing brightly with two free kicks in quick succession, the first a grounder right across goal which beat everyone, the second to put clear a Rec sub who skimmed his chance off the top of the crossbar.

This was a true Jekyll and Hyde performance by Comber Rec, a bipolar display that must surely preach the benefits of simple, direct, first time football, and highlight the dangers of over-elaborate close dribbling and running into trouble, especially on a gluepot pitch.