Dergview... 0
PSNI.......... 0
THE first team continue to make hard work of securing a top six finish after being held scoreless by PSNI at Darragh Park on Saturday.
Despite enjoying the lion's share of the possession, Richard Clarke's charges were unable to unlock a well organised and resolute police defence and, as a consequence, have slipped to seventh in the table after Lurgan Celtic pulled off a surprise 4-3 win over Institute to move into the top half. That almost certainly means that the Derg men will have to win their final two games against Armagh City and Annagh United before the split.
Against the PSNI, the home side failed to translate copious amounts of possession into an end product, due in the main to the lack of quality when it came to picking out a final pass or delivering a telling cross. Dergview handed a first start to returning goalkeeper Stefan McCusker and in the opening minutes the new keeper was left stranded by a miskick by a defender.
Ryan Berry and spearhead Lukasz Adamczyk both failed to take full advantage and the home goal remained intact.Having survived that early scare it was Dergview who thereafter called the shots with Duwayne McManus teeing up Ryan Campbell to test PSNI stopper Jordan Williamson with a curling shot.
Campbell had an even better opportunity moments later when played in by Aaron Arkinson but again Williamson got down smartly to save the striker's shot.In response, the visitors posed a significant threat at the set piece and following a corner Mark Anderson's in-swinging cross-cum-shot from the right cannoned off McCusker's far post.
For the remainder of the half the home attack promised much but too often constructive build up fizzled out when it mattered most.The hosts upped the ante at the beginning of the second half and, after good play by Nathan Cashel on the left, Arkinson laid the ball into the path of striker Kyle Friel-Curran whose goalbound shot was deflected wide.
In the next attack McManus and Philip Wallace combined to usher Cashel in on the right but his angled drive was saved by Williamson who was relieved to see full-back Garth Falconer fire his follow up effort into the side netting. Dergview kept coming with Williamson saving a Friel-Curran snapshot, following a clever touch by Arkinson, who moments later struck a screaming volley which the PSNI keeper pushed away from the base of his right post.
The visitors remained penned in their own half as Campbell had another shot blocked in the wake of an excellent counter attack instigated by substitute Jude Ballard.Fellow replacement Richard Lecky then had a shot diverted wide after Campbell had turned provider before the visitors threatened to snatch victory with two excellent counter attacks in the dying moments.
On both occasions it was substitute Johnny Courtney who came close to stealing all three points.On the first occasion the former Ballinamallard United striker was denied by a superb block by Mattie Buchanan and shortly afterwards the attacker was somehow chased down by the backtracking Wallace, the defender getting enough on the ball for McCusker to gather safely.
Aaron Arkinson evades the tackle of his PSNI marker. Picture by Karol McGonigle