Danske Bank Irish Premiership: Cliftonville 2 Crusaders 2
IN the dying winter light, above the evening glow of Solitude’s floodlights, the Cavehill never looked more magnificent. The best thing about the ageing main stand in the north Belfast ground is the beautiful panoramic view of the mountainous landscape that overlooks this part of the city.
May ‘Napoleon’s Nose’ – the part of the mountain that juts out to pierce our sky-line – forever remain the same.
Beneath its eternal beauty, though, everything has changed. Covid19 attacks more than our lungs.
It seizes our culture and the things we love to do. Psychologically, it assaults us in an unimaginably ruthless way.
It steals everything we treasure.
It’s the worst kind of thief.
On Saturday afternoon, Cliftonville versus Crusaders was the standalone fixture in local football, the last defiant roar against the dangerously ubiquitous virus before a two-week circuit-breaker.
As the north Belfast rivals played out an engaging two-all draw, the deep suspicion was that it could be the last meaningful action in local sport for quite some time as every aspect of society tries to ‘flatten the curve’.
Recent experience suggests once you call a halt to things it’s increasingly difficult to restart them.
The hope is, together the Irish FA and NIFL can introduce Covid testing for players and staff in order to restore confidence in the Irish Premiership resuming.
But the Covid infection rates will dictate everything – just as it has always done since the start of this terrible pandemic.
Most of the post-match conversation, sadly, wasn’t about Ben Kennedy’s dramatic late equaliser for Crusaders or Cliftonville’s insatiable appetite for doing the ugly things of the game exceptionally well.
Everything came back to Covid.
Opposing managers Stephen Baxter and Paddy McLaughlin couldn’t have been more eloquent in their reflections of the game itself and where football goes from here.
“I think when the whole country is going into lockdown the league has to stop,” Reds boss McLaughlin told reporters in the main stand afterwards.
“I’m in full agreement with it. The staff’s families are wide open to infection. The only worry for me is hopefully we get back playing again because we were told this before. [But] At the end of the day you can’t put people’s lives at risk, definitely not.”
With testing expected to become part of the Premiership landscape, McLaughlin insisted it would be a “massive help”.
Baxter praised the Premiership clubs for undertaking “incredible measures” to keep football going up to this point but acknowledged the circuit-breaker was not only welcomed but necessary in trying to contain the spread of the virus.
“We’re very happy to be playing football. We’ve taken incredible measures at our football clubs to keep safe, how we train, it has been first class. But that little bit of testing could come in, like it’s happening in England and Scotland,” said the Crusaders boss as his side stayed in third place while their hosts moved up a place to fifth.
“It would be a weight off everybody’s minds, I think, just to give us more clarity that we are safe coming into these environments, on top of what we’re doing.
“And with the vaccines coming is the ray of light, but you must take note of the numbers. If the government say to you the numbers are at a record high – the highest number of deaths, the highest number of infection cases – the only way to curb that is social distancing and to shut it all down for a period, and hopefully we get through to the spring.”
Baxter added: “We’re enjoying getting out and playing for people’s mental health, we’re trying our best, we’re managing a difficult situation.
“Do I think we should have a two-week circuit breaker? One-hundred per cent. If the numbers are as high or higher in two weeks’ time, then we should sit down and take another two-week break. And we must go through a rigorous round of testing.”
Despite the gloomy but entirely sensible post-match briefings from the managers, it was important to remember a game of football took place on Saturday too.
Ninety-plus minutes of escapism produced an enjoyable spectacle for the handful of reporters and club officials who are able to attend this decidedly eerie derby.
Cliftonville hearts were broken with 20 seconds remaining when substitute Ben Kennedy’s dangerous cross from the right side bobbled into the corner of the net to ensure the Crues took a share of the spoils.
It was rough justice on Paddy McLaughlin’s side who have seemingly rediscovered their appetite for hard graft and selfless running.
After grabbing a late winner in Dungannon last week, the Reds started at a snail’s pace and paid the price after four minutes.
Paul Heatley, Crusaders’ ever-green winger, was upended by Jamie Harney and Jamie McGonigle slotted the resultant spot-kick past Aaron McCarey, who was making his debut in goal for Cliftonville - a likely replacement for Richard Brush who is set to take up a coaching role at Sligo Rovers.
What got the Reds back on level terms was how well their forwards and midfield pressed the Crusaders defence into mistakes.
Conor McMenamin’s angled drive was deflected into the path of new signing Rory Hale, formerly of Crusaders, who slotted home from close range despite Rodney Brown’s best efforts to clear the ball just a few minutes before the break.
“I thought Ryan Curran led the line brilliantly,” McLaughlin said.
“He set the tone, even for our first goal, he won the ball back for Conor ‘Mac’ and that ran right throughout the team. The desire and the energy that the boys showed was fantastic – [but] we should be doing that every game, not in big derby games.”
A bright start to the second half and more good pressing from the home side saw them edge ahead on 50 minutes after Chris Hegarty sliced Conor McDermott’s cross into his own net.
Although the Reds are showing encouraging signs and more cohesion, they never quite looked completely secure at the back as subs Jordan Owens and Kennedy improved Crusaders.
With just a few seconds remaining, Kennedy found enough space on the right flank to swing in a dangerous cross which found the narrow corridor between the goalkeeper and Reds defence before rippling the net.
“We should have won the match,” said McLaughlin. “It’s just unfortunate that we didn’t hold out for another 20 seconds.”
Goalscorer Rory Hale has undoubtedly given the Reds more energy and creativity in the final third of the pitch in his two games to date – but the Newington man always feared a late assault from his former club.
“I’ve learnt most of the physical side of the game at Crusdaers – being that terrier type player and getting close to people, winning second balls,” said Hale, who spent several seasons at Aston Villa earlier in his career.
“I knew what we were coming up against because he [Stephen Baxter] is telling the Crusaders players what he told me to do, getting into the opposition, not giving them a yard or a touch.
“It was a big sickener at the end. It feels like a defeat but Paddy doesn’t want us to feel like that because for 92 minutes we were outstanding – we out-battled them and out-played them – but that’s what Crusaders do, I know that. They fight to the last kick of the game. I said: ‘Don’t let Ben Kennedy onto his left foot.’ But it’s in the back of the net.
“Crusaders had six strikers on the pitch, and we have to work on our game-management but there are a lot of positives to take out of that performance,” said Hale.
Cliftonville: A McCarey, C McDermott, A Donnelly, J Harney, G Breen, L Bagnall, R Doherty, C Curran, C McMenamin (R O’Reilly 87), R Hale (D O’Connor 82), R Curran Subs not used: R Brush, M McCrudden, J Gormley, O Casey, T Maguire
Crusaders: G Doherty, J Forsythe, R Brown, BJ Burns, C Hegarty (B Kennedy 88), R Weir (J Owens 56), P Lowry, D Caddell, J McGonigle (D Cushley 78), A Leckey, P Heatley Subs not used: S O’Neill, M Ruddy, T Burns, J Patterson
Referee: T Marshall
