CLIFTONVILLE suffered back-to-back league defeats for the first time this season after James Teelan scored in the 96th minute of Portadown’s 2-1 win at Solitude on Saturday afternoon.
Neither side could make the breakthrough in a largely uneventful opening half and all the action arrived after the break.
The Ports broke the deadlock when Eamon Fyfe steered home at the back post and it looked to have been enough to earn all three points until Odhran Casey powered home a header in the 90th minute.
Jim Magilton’s side pushed for a late winner, but instead they were caught out in midfield and Teelan pounced in the sixth minute of added time.
A much changed Cliftonville side suffered a late defeat at home
Tempers frayed in the technical area in the aftermath with referee Christopher Morrison issuing red cards to Cliftonville assistant manager Gerard Lyttle, Portadown coach Steven Hyndes and Ports midfielder and ex-Cliftonville player Ben Wylie for their parts in the commotion.
Teelan’s goal proved the last meaningful action and secured his sides first victory at Solitude in 11 years and condemned Cliftonville to successive defeats after they appeared to have turned a corner following a difficult start to the campaign.
Boss Jim Magilton felt his side flattered to deceive throughout and didn’t believe they gave the supporters anything to get excited about.
“Even though we had the ball and flattered to deceive a little bit, I thought we turned the ball over very cheaply,” he reflected. “We’ve good players who play here and train here; as I have always said, if we train how we play and play as we train then we’re a different animal.
“Eric (McWoods) misses a chance and it seems to zap the energy out of us. There was no energy within the ground, and we have to give our supporters something to get excited about – and we didn’t."
Magilton felt his side lacked imagination and desire and pinpointed Odhran Casey as the only person to come out with any credit.
“For 45 minutes, other than Eric’s chance, I thought we were really poor,” said the Reds boss.
“I didn’t think we showed any imagination and desire to go and take the game to them. They sat off, they’d a game plan so we had enough opportunities to go and pass the ball and string a few passes together to open them up a little bit.
“We’d no real chances other than Eric’s chance in the 45 minutes. Joe Gormley didn’t have a chance, we didn’t create an opportunity. You get in at half time and have a few choice words and you’re thinking, right, reaction. Again, we flattered to deceive.
“Odhran Casey shows desire and unbelievable energy to win a tackle, the ball goes wide and he goes and wins it. Other than him, there are very few people that can actually come out with any real credit. I’m the manager, I pick the team so I have to take full responsibility for this, and I do”.
There were five personnel changes to the XI that started last weekend's defeat to Dungannon Swifts.
Two were enforced as Rory Hale and Jonny Addis missed out through suspension, whilst Conor Pepper, Ryan Curran and Adebayo Fapetu dropped out.
Shaun Leppard, Conor Barr, Harry Wilson, Shaun Robertson and Eric McWoods were all drafted into the starting team.
Cliftonville forced the first opening when Micheál Glynn slipped in Joe Gormley whose shot was diverted behind for a corner, former Reds keeper Aaron McCarey collected a Glynn ball across goal from the resulting set-piece ahead of Jack Keaney.
Luke Wilson let fly with a speculative effort from distance that was too high to trouble Morrison in the Reds goal in response.
The best chances of the half came after the half hour mark. Eric McWoods latched onto a forward pass but shot inches wide of McCarey's goal.
At the other end James Teelan was primed to pull the trigger though a timely slide tackle from Odhran Casey partially averted the danger and Ben Wylie’s follow up curled wide of the target as the half finished scoreless.
The opener arrived after 64 minutes and it was Portadown who hit the front. Steven McCullough charged forward from his own half and had the composure to pick out Fyfe to apply the finish at the back post.
Fyfe’s goal looked to have been the difference but as the game was about hit injury time, Cliftonville restored parity.
Jack Keaney dug out a cross from the right channel and Odhran Casey rose highest to meet the cross, guiding it towards the bottom corner and past McCarey to set up a grandstand finish in the five minutes that were added.
The Reds sought a late winner for the second home game running and it could have come when Micheál Glynn sent his free kick into the back post but substitute Conor Falls glanced an opportunity wide of the post.
It looked as though both sides would have to settle for a point apiece, but an Odhran Casey error was punished in the 96th minute. The stand-in captain was caught in possession as he tried to pierce a forward pass and the visitors countered with a crossfield pass finding Teelan to charge towards goal and guide his shot past the unrushing Morrison and into the net.
As Teelan and his team-mates wheeled away to celebrate their first Solitude victory in 11 years, pushing and shoving broke out in the technical area. When order was restored referee Christopher Morrison handed out red cards to Gerard Lyttle and Steven Hyndes for their part and then substitute Ben Wylie followed.
There wasn’t time for Cliftonville to rescue a point again as the Ports held out and they remain unbeaten in their last four encounters with the North Belfast club.
CLIFTONVILLE: Morrison, Keaney, Casey, Leppard, Barr, Wilson (Falls 82’), Gordon (McCay 59’), Robertson, Glynn, McWoods (Bermingham 59’), Gormley (Sheridan 82’).
PORTADOWN: McCarey, Altintop, Mackinnon, Wilson (Gibson 79’), Chapman, Wylie (Traynor 88’), McCullough, Fyfe (Obhakhan 72’), Teelan, Thompson, Tulloch (Mayse 79’).
REFEREE: Christopher Morrison
