Clandy Buoyed!

With none of United’s three latest injury victims, Phil Charnock, Stephen Collier and Aiden Watson making it, the United manager had three changes forced upon him. Gary Haveron came off the bench into centre midfield, with Dean Youle selected alongside him and Kieran Donaghy, out of favour since attending a family wedding three weeks ago, returned in his familiar right back slot. United almost took the lead after 30 seconds, when Rory Hamill broke down the right wing, but his cross was too deep for the unmarked Sweeney and so the chance was lost. A minute or so later, Donaghy missed a tackle on Ards player Jason Hill in midfield and he passed to his unmarked left back, who without hardly any hesitation, swung a deep cross to the far post. Bangor’s on-loan coloured striker, the six-foot four Avvn Jephcott, leapt high above Gary Smyth to send a powerful header into the net and put Ards one up. I was a little perturbed at this turn of events as I thought, the man with the unpronounceable first name was going to be too much for our defence to handle. But Gary Smyth proved equal to the task and in fact rendered Jephcott fairly ineffective for the rest of the game in heading duels, at least. That goal came in the third minute and United ‘spurned a couple of chances to get back on level terms. First Rory Hamill found himself one on one with the Bangor keeper, but chose an attempted chip, which sailed harmlessly over the bar, when surely a shot would’ve been more appropriate. That was after 10 minutes, but worse was to come five minutes later, when Haveron fed Scates on the right wing, Hamill somehow managed to push the winger’s cross wide when it looked easier to score. After 23 minutes Haveron almost equalised when his header from Rosbotham’s corner was kicked off the line with the keeper stranded. Craig McClean, who has really come on by leaps and bounds of late, put over a delightful cross to the far post where Gareth Scates headed it back across goal for Dean Youle to head his first senior goal from 8 yards out. That goal came in the 28th minute and it was no more than United deserved. United should’ve increased their lead when Gary Haveron found the unmarked Sweeney, but the striker failed to find the target from 20 yards out. But Haveron and United were not going to be denied and the big Larne man made no mistake after 41 minutes, when he headed yet another Rosbotham corner into the net off the crossbar. Willie McFrederick, often criticised by yours truly, made a great save on the stroke of halftime, when Ards with some slick passing opened up the United defence, but McFrederick saved well with his legs.

United bombarded the Ards goal at the start of the second half and we had yet another strange decision, when the linesman at that end of the ground gave an offside with two Bangor men stranded on their goal- line. Gary Smyth had a shot cleared off the line from a Rosbotham corner and then Rosbotham almost scored from the rebound, when the Bangor keeper was adjudged to have punched his shot round the post for another corner. Personally I thought the ball hit the post, but referee Michael Ross thought otherwise. This corner proved expensive for Ards as Sweeney rose unchallenged at the far post to head United’s third goal in this game and his own sixth of the season, in the 58th minute. After this United seemed to believe the game was over as they went into defensive mode and allowed the home team some hope. During this last third of the game, McFrederick made a couple of good saves and Albert Watson made a last ditch tackle to thwart an Ards forward. During this spell the United manager took off first Gareth Scates, just seconds after he hit a wild shot over the bar, his one blemish in an otherwise excellent performance. Paul McDowell was the man to replace Scates, with Sweeney moving onto the wing, to allow the former Glens striker to partner Rory Hamill upfront. Then with 8 minutes remaining he took off Hamill and brought on Kevin Kelbie. McDowell came within an ace of his first senior goal for the club in the 89th minute, when his rasping drive from 20 yards, just flashed past the post. This was in fact the last real action of the match as referee Michael Ross brought proceedings to a close two minutes later. United had taken another three points, but they had not triumphed quite in the way they should’ve. I would like to see them put teams to the ‘sword’ instead of taking their foot off the gas and giving teams like Ards hope, when they shouldn’t have any.

McFrederick 8 Hamill 6 MoM: Gary Smyth

Donaghy 6 Sweeney 7

McClean 8 Haveron 8

Youle 7 Rosbotham 7 Referee: M. Ross 4

Watson 7 1st Sub: McDowell 6

Smyth 8 2nD Sub: Kelbie 6

Scates 8