Amateur League weekend review

Wellington Rec were winners at Premier side Malachians, although it could have gone either way, and did go all the way to penalties with goalkeeper Paul Morton the hero saving the home side’s first two kicks and their third one rattling off the timber. Rec were ‘spot-on’, with Craig Todd, Andy Waide and William Magill making it three out of three. Dean Shaw and Stuart Hilditch had earlier cancelled out Mals’ two-goal lead during the 90.

Barn United were 3-0 winners away to 2b side Civil Service. There were initial hiccups as Barn had two goals controversially disallowed inside the opening six minutes.

Jackson Griffith opened the scoring with his first of the afternoon on the half-hour before a Civil Service own goal doubled their advantage. Griffith rounded it all off near the end.

Meanwhile, there was a real ‘dinger’ at The Diamond where Rathfern edged out 2C leaders Lower Shankill in a nine-goal thriller, thanks to substitute Ronnie Hamilton’s 87th-minute winner.

Yet it might have been a lot less complicated had Glenn Harris’s seemingly goalbound shot, to make it 4-1, not become glued in the mud on the line.

Last year’s beaten semi finalists thus sensed their opportunity, pulling it back to 3-3 and then 4-4 before Hamilton’s last-gasp winner. Rathfern’s other marksmen were Carl Murray (two, one a penalty), Kurtis Irwin and Harris.

While Rathfern beat the side at the top of 2c, Nortel lost 3-2 at 2A pacesetters Tullycarnet, in a tie switched to the 3G at the Hanwood Centre. Jordan Clarke and Elliott McKimm were their goalscorers.

Newington Rangers, having turned up with the bare 11, put up a brave fight but went down 4-0 at Kilmore Rec. The last two goals arrived in the last 10 minutes, after the visitors had played all but the opening 10 minutes with just 10 men, having lost Graeme Henry with a head injury.

In Stephen King’s first game in charge, Islandmagee went down 2-1 away to Aquinas. Chris Dykes scored the Island’s goal.

Elsewhere, Larne Tech Old Boys lost 3-1 at Lisburn Rangers. Reece Moore got their goal.

Clarence Cup selected results: Albert Foundry 4-0 Greenisland; Civil Service 0-3 Barn United; Rathfern Rangers 5-4 Lower Shankill; Tullycarnet 3-2 Nortel; Aquinas 2-1 Islandmagee; Kilmore Rec 4-0 Newington Rangers; Malachians 2-5 Wellington Rec.