Maguiresbridge 2

Omagh Hospitals 1

Maguiresbridge moved ahead of Omagh Hospitals into second place in Division Two after a narrow victory over their promotion rivals. Goals from player manager Stuart Murphy and Peter Law were enough to edge a tight encounter, with the three points elevating Maguiresbridge to within two points of league leaders Strule United.

The home side went into the match having only lost once in their eight league games, but they had not played for almost a month and manager Stuart Murphy admitted it took a while to get into their stride. “We hadn’t played for three or four weeks so for the first 15 minutes or so we were a bit rusty having had no competitive games,” he admitted. “From about 15 minutes in until the hour mark we played some nice football and I was pretty pleased with how we did. We started to get ball down and move it about, and I thought we were starting to play some very good football. Every time we went forward we were causing them problems and we looked like we going to score. They kept probing but our back line was very solid with John Elliott and Jamie Dunlop dealing with anything that came at them. Omagh Hospitals probably feel they were unlucky not to come away with a point because they pressed hard for the draw but thankfully we were able to hold out to secure the three points.”

The victory maintains Maguiresbridge’s title charge and Murphy is looking for a strong run to Christmas to boost their chances of moving up. “I have been saying to the boys that it is all in our own hands and it is all to play for,” he said. “The season is going well for us and we have two games now before Christmas and if we can get another six points out of those games I will be more than pleased.”

In a quiet opening to the match defences were on top as both sides struggled to carve out clear cut opportunities. Just as Maguiresbridge looked to be getting on top Omagh Hospitals took the lead. The away side worked the ball well through midfield and Mick McCullough took possession in a wide position before cutting inside and drilling a low shot across the keeper into the far corner of the net.

Maguiresbridge responded well to the set back and pulled themselves level with half an hour gone. Warren Murphy delivered a corner into the danger area and Stuart Murphy rose to head past the keeper from six yards out. The equaliser spurred the home side on and Warren Murphy had an opportunity when space opened up for him, but from the edge of the penalty area he scuffed his shot. Glenn Irwin was the next to try his luck, but his long range effort flew just wide of the upright. With half time approaching Adam Chartres almost added his side’s second but his effort from an angle was well saved.

The half time interval did not halt Maguiresbridge’s momentum and their pressure was eventually rewarded with the winning goal. John Elliott delivered a free kick into Murphy on the edge of the penalty area and he slipped a short pass through to Peter Law, who made no mistake from ten yards.

As the game progressed the Omagh side pushed for a goal that would earn them a share of the points, and Gary Harper had to produce a double save from a free kick, palming away the initial effort before blocking the follow up with his feet to ensure his team would claim the points.