‘Three and Easy’ Rec at Rathfriland

Comber Rec travelled to south Down on Saturday to meet Rathfriland Rangers in the opening round of the Intermediate Cup, and notched up yet another clean sheet win without too much bother. Rec went 3-0 up just after half time, and held that lead comfortably against a punchless home side.
Comber were missing Peter Kelly, Gareth Larmour and Keith Dougherty, and had Brian Burgess back in goal as the game started on a very soft and pockmarked pitch that ruled out the possibility of smooth, flowing football.
Right from the opening whistle Comber assumed control. Marty Robinson’s clever footwork lost two defenders, but his cross shot was into the side netting, and then Gordon Leckey did well to block keeper Travers’ kick out and Craig McCracken picked up the rebound, but the angle was too acute to return it on target.
Rangers seemed overwhelmed and lacking in self belief, and they were fortunate in the eighth minute when a smart four man Rec move put McCracken through but he was blown up for a hand ball offence.
The first real opening arrived with ten minutes played. Jim McCloskey cut back a fine ball for Brent Reid, but he sidefooted it well over from inside the area, but the pressure continued with a Tim Ritchie corner that was poorly cleared, and Robinson smacked the ball well wide.
A goal was in the offing, and it came exactly on the quarter hour. McCloskey’s centre from the right found Leckey in the box, and he pivoted quickly to stab the ball high into the net, giving Travers no chance.
Amazingly, a Rangers team that hadn’t appeared in attack at all could have equalised inside a minute when hesitation at the back by the Rec defence gave Barlow the chance for a snapshot that the alert Burgess parried with a great reflex stop.
 Leckey then had the opportunity to double his own and his team’s tally in the next minute when Campbell handled Ritchie’s free kick, but he drove his spot kick just wide of the right post.
Leckey made amends midway through the half when his measured cross ball from the left reached McCloskey, and the Rec captain showed classy, clinical finishing with a right foot 20 yard strike that flew into the home net past a transfixed keeper.
Rathfriland never seriously looked capable of breaking down a Rec rearguard in which Neil Magowan and Ross Hagen were immense, and even when they had a half chance they squandered it, as was the case when Burns sliced his shot wide in the 26th minute.
On the half hour Campbell was well placed to head a Robinson strike off his goal line, and Robinson drove wide a weak clearance from a McCracken corner.
Rangers’ best moment in the whole match was a Fitzpatrick 25 yarder ten minutes from the interval that Burgess tipped beautifully over his bar, but at the other end Rec could have increased their advantage when McCloskey again set Reid up perfectly, but Travis grabbed his attempted chip at the near post.
Kevin Monson came on in the second period for Chris Nicholl who had incurred a slight injury, and he didn’t have too long to wait to net his first goal for Comber. McCracken had already driven a first time shot across goal and a yard wide, but with ten minutes gone he squared a nice pass to Monson who slipped his marker cleverly and rolled the ball into the empty net.
With the game over as a contest, Rec were able to rest McCloskey, and the match pretty well died. Play became really scrappy, with both sides repeatedly gaining possession and instantly losing it. In Rec’s case it was through short passes on a very heavy pitch, and over running with the ball instead of moving it. In Rathfriland’s case, once they reached the final third, Magowan and Hegan mopped up everything they had to offer.
Monson had a good chance to add his second right in front of goal, but dithered and lost out. Leckey did put the ball in the net following a Ritchie corner, but it was disallowed.
The two remaining moments of action worth recording are a lovely piece of McCracken footwork that allowed him to jink past two markers only to drag his shot wide, and then an outrageous Robinson run from deep inside his own half that saw him lose and regain the ball twice before getting in a shot that Travers held quite easily. The game ended with Burgess smothering on his line a halfhearted shot by Rangers sub Mackin.
The gap in class between these two teams was clear from the outset, but both sets of players deserve credit for keeping going on an energy-sapping surface.
Comber Rec have been less than satisfied with some of the refereeing they have witnessed in recent weeks, so it is refreshing to be able to report that young referee Robert Newell was first class and won the approval of both Rathfriland and Comber players and supporters.