NIFL Premiership 

Cliftonville 2-0 Glenavon 

CLIFTONVILLE edged closer to securing a seventh-place finish with a 2-0 win over Glenavon at Solitude on Saturday afternoon. 

Neither side was able to make the breakthrough in the opening half with Ryan Curran eventually scrambling in the opener early in the second half and substitute Eric McWoods netting for the third game in succession to secure victory and a fourth league win on the spin. 

Reds boss Jim Magilton felt it was a game in which both sides nullified each other’s threat until the second period, and although they secured victory, he is demanding better. 

“It builds momentum for us - three points were important today,” Magilton reflected. 

“It was always going to be that sort of game for us because Glenavon came and were always going to be possession-based and they were. 

“In the first half, each team nullified each other's threats, we had a great opportunity from Alex Parsons - a great save and that was really it. 

“We talked at half-time about raising intensity and raising the levels, because at the moment we still have so much to play for. 

“There are Cup final places up for grabs and we have to secure seventh. Players are aware of that. It is important that we won and of course, it is another clean sheet, but we certainly have to be better than that too.”

Magilton continued to rotate his starting XI with Odhran Casey returning from a few weeks out injured and Kris Lowe coming in after a layoff, with Joe Gormley and Rory Hale starting on the bench. 

The opening quarter of an hour was uneventful as both sides struggled to carve out opportunities. 

Glenavon keeper Mark Byrne was first to be called into action, turning Alex Parsons' goal-bound header from Odhran Casey’s cross behind for a corner. 

From the resulting set-piece, Kris Lowe’s cross to the back post was partially cleared and Ryan Curran curled a shot wide from the edge of the box. 

The Lurgan Blues’ best chance arrived after 36 minutes when Len O’Sullivan’s pinpoint cross fell to Paul McGovern, but he was unable to make clean contact and David Odumosu gathered as a quiet opening half finished scoreless. 

Cliftonville broke the deadlock in the 53rd minute. Shea Kearney delivered a cross from the left that Alex Parsons glanced goalwards and Ryan Curran scrambled the ball home at the back post to make it 1-0. 

The Reds had two quickfire opportunities to double their lead on the stroke on the hour mark. 

Shea Kearney provided another cross that Odhran Caset met, but his header was headed off the line by David McDaid. 

The resulting corner from Kris Lowe was partially cleared to the edge of the box where Micheál Glynn gathered and his rasping shot was pushed over the bar and behind by Bryne. 

Glenavon almost levelled when substitute Peter Campbell’s free-kick was met by on-loan Glentoran defender Harry Murphy, but his headed attempt flashed by the far post and wide. 

Instead, Cliftonville would double their lead with little over a quarter of an hour remaining. Once again it was a goal that was manufactured from the bench with youngster Coran Madden confidently soloing from his own half and picking out the run of Eric McWoods whose shot beat Byrne at his near post to make it 2-0. 

Madden had the chance to net his first league goal for the club before the afternoon was finished. Byrne came out of his goal to close down a Ryan Corrigan shot that ricocheted into the path of Madden and he lifted the ball towards the empty net- with his shot dropping over the bar. 

In the end, Curran and McWoods goals were enough to make it four victories on the spin for the second time this season and put the Solitude side on the brink of securing seventh spot and a guaranteed place in the European Play-Offs at the end of the season. 

CLIFTONVILLE: Odumosu, Casey (Addis 70’), Keaney, McGuinness, Kearney, Pepper (Hale 70’), Lowe, Glynn, Stewart (Madden 58’), Parsons (McWoods 58’), Curran (Corrigan 70’). 

GLENAVON: Byrne, Toure, O’Sullivan, Malone (Marshall 45+1’), McDaid (O’Connor 70’), Atherton (Campbell 55’), McKeown, Murphy (Heaney 70’), Carlin, McGovern (Lynch 70’), Wilson. 

REFEREE: Louise Thompson