Rival opinions after the Comrades’ narrow cup victory over Ballynure

In the absence of manager Eddie Hill, who was confined to bed with a tummy bug, his assistant Gary Bell stated that Comrades had enough of the ball to win more convincingly, while Ballynure president Michael Graham felt that his side had been robbed by Gary Brown’s controversial winner.

“Ballynure set out their stall to frustrate us by playing five across the middle of the park, with Ronnie Burns the lone striker,” said Bell, “and this resulted in a tight first half, but after the interval we had the upper hand, so that Paddy Flood was never seriously troubled, and we never looked like losing.

“With Evan Forsythe and Andrew Doyle in commanding form at the heart of the defence, and Simon McGowan and Gerard McAlea in top form in midfield, we had the edge in vital areas.

“We had them on the back foot for most of the second half, but were unable to turn possession into goals, and I was a bit disappointed about that.

“In the previous game against Killymoon, midfielder Adam Gray and skipper Ricky Higgins were our best two players, but neither of them was available for this clash, and I am hoping that Ricky will solve the problem up front when he returns from holiday.

“In the end, superior fitness told and the important thing is that we are into the next round.”

On the other hand, there was disappointment in the Ballynure camp.

Officials of the Ballymena Premier League contend that their top teams are on a par with the Championship 2 sides, so this was a massive showdown, with league pride at stake, and the 1-0 result vindicated this opinion.

Michael Graham added: “We were robbed by a controversial goal. Our players were adamant that the ball was out of play when Kyle Agnew crossed for Brown to hit the winner, but the referee was not interested in our protests.

“We were classified as the pre-match underdogs, so we had nothing to lose. Manager Gary Burns opted for a 4-5-1 formation, with the emphasis on tight defence while relying on quick counter-attacks, and especially in the first half there was little between the teams.

“The big crowd created a great atmosphere, but the fans had little to cheer about with goalmouth action at a premium, especially in the first half, but there was tension in the air right up to the final whistle when we played three up front after Comrades took the lead.

“We gave a good account of ourselves, even without Mark Curlett and Josh McIlroy, and we now look forward to mounting a serious challenge for the Ballymena Premier League title.”