Rivals meet in derby duel

The game ended in a draw and as with all derbies the match got off at a frantic pace with the bragging rights up for grabs as the sides went toe-to-toe in the early exchanges.

Before either team had time to settle the Juniors got the early breakthrough with their first meaningful attack as Liam Farrell latched on to a loose ball and finished well to continue his rich vein of form.

The Juniors barely had time to regroup before Rangers came forward and won a corner and as the ball dropped to Simon McCallister he found the net to level the contest.

After this goal Rangers continued to press but the Juniors defended well on the back foot until half time.

The second half was very much a different story as the Juniors asked all the questions of the Rangers defence with their keeper pulling off a string of fine saves.

The Juniors could have taken the lead after Jonny Rodgers was upended in the box and from the resulting spot kick Jake Dennison stepped up only to see his effort cannon off the crossbar and hooked away by the Rangers defence to keep the scores level.

The Juniors had a couple of chances to go in front again, however they were unable to find a breakthrough as the game ran into the dying minutes.

As the game neared conclusion it was Rangers who clung on and defend on the back foot to get away with a point.

Once again this was a fine display from the two local sides, with no quarter asked or given.

Banbridge Juniors would like to thank Paul Burn for stepping in at the last minute to referee the match.

This week’s man of the match was Owen Byrne who tortured the Rangers back four all game from the left wing.