Cleary Celtic 2
Enniskillen Rangers 3 (AFTER EXTRA-TIME)
By Jonathan Hogan
ENNISKILLEN Rangers staged a breathtaking cup comeback at Newry Showgrounds on Saturday, with Jordan Breen once again proving he has a knack for clutch moments.
The forward, who scored a stoppage-time winner at Kesh last time out, struck twice in the dying minutes — first in the 93rd to force extra-time, then in the 108th to seal a 3-2 victory and send Rangers into the quarter finals.
Cleary Celtic thought they had it won when Michael Ireland fired home in the first minute of stoppage time, sparking wild celebrations among the home fans and bench.
But just two minutes later, Breen met Jay Keenan’s perfect cross at the back post to dramatically volley Rangers level, before he then turned home Conor Rippey’s pinpoint delivery to complete the stunning turnaround.
“The lads would be forgiven for dropping their heads when 91st minute you’ve just conceded to go 2-1 down, but it wasn’t over — that’s the mentality we want to keep building on,” said Rangers’ manager Darren Higginbotham.
“Cleary are a good team; you don’t get to Junior finals like they have by being a bad team, and with a good crowd there, there were a lot of things for our boys to face up to.
“But ultimately, I’m delighted for the guys.
“They’ve worked so hard, been through a lot this season already, but we’re improving and learning to win games in key moments.”
The match had already delivered moments of brilliance. Connaire Harrison opened the scoring in the 11th minute with a stunning overhead kick from a long throw.
It then took something special to break them down; Rangers drawing level in the 61st minute when Keenan, under pressure with five defenders around him, weaved, twisted and smashed a finish past the keeper.
Cleary regained the lead in first-half stoppage time through Ireland, capitalising on a goal kick flicked on for Declan Monaghan and a low cross from what appeared to be an offside position.
The home side erupted, the win minutes from being theirs, but Rangers responded instantly: Matthew Dixon carried the ball forward, then Eoin McManus fed Keenan, whose devilish first-time cross found Breen to side-foot home the equaliser and force extra-time.
More drama followed in extra-time, with Rangers on top. Dixon again drove forward menacingly, Joel Byrne and Paul Coulter battled to keep possession, before it fell to Rippey, who delivered a delightful diagonal cross from left-back.
Breen timed his run to perfection, lunging at the back post to steer the ball home and send the Rangers camp wild.
“It was stressful, but ultimately in cup competition, the result is all that matters, and I felt we were well worth it,” reflected a proud Higginbotham.
“From about 30 minutes onwards, I felt we took control of the game. For huge parts of the second half, they sat deep, but the moment of magic from Jason Keenan was outstanding. On big days, you want big players to stand up — and he really did.
He added: “Then Jason puts an unbelievable cross in, and Jordan does what Jordan does and takes us to extra-time.
“At that stage, we felt on top, and we kept knocking on the door, and again we left it late, but it was a great cross and a smart finish.
“Then it was a case of seeing it out.”
