Danske Bank Premiership: Cliftonville 2 Glentoran 1
CLIFTONVILLE manager Paddy McLaughlin says the star in Sean Moore is there for all to see after two fine finishes from the 17-year-old blasted the Reds past Glentoran on Saturday.
The winger opened the scoring in the 10th minute at Solitude when he was afforded space on the edge of the Glens penalty area and took full advantage to finish beyond Aaron McCarey. The teenager doubled Cliftonville's lead in the 33rd minute with another composed conversion and, although Terry Devlin pulled goal back for Glentoran, Moore’s contribution proved enough to guarantee Cliftonville an important three points.
It was the latest eyebrow-raising performance from Moore, who has been called up to the Republic of Ireland U19 set-up in recent weeks, and McLaughlin was in no mood to talk down what he calls a “special talent”.
“He’s going to be a star and it’s there for all to see,” said the Derry man.
“Anybody who’s been watching our games can see that his ability is exceptional and that’s why he’s been getting so much attention off the pitch, but he takes it all in his stride. He’s been a breath of fresh air for both ourselves and the league in general.”
McLaughlin, however, doubled down on his insistence that Moore – and other attacking talent in the Danske Bank Premiership – should be given greater protection from referees.
“Along with the attention he’s been getting off the pitch, he’s starting to get the attention on the pitch as well,” the Cliftonville boss added.
“You can see that teams have identified him as a key threat and are trying to limit that, but you can’t praise what the kid brings to the game in one breath and then try to take him out of the game.
“It’s not good enough for officials to be saying to me we can’t book someone because it’s too early in the game or it’s their first foul – if a challenge is bad enough, it should be punished. And this isn’t just about Sean, it’s about protecting all creative players in the league. The tackle that put [Glentoran’s] Conor McMenamin out of the game against Coleraine recently is a perfect example.”
Elsewhere on Saturday, Larne maintained their six point lead over the Reds with a hard-fought 3-2 east Antrim derby win over Carrick Rangers. Andrew Ryan opened the scoring for Larne after a goalless first hour at Taylor’s Avenue, but Kyle Cherry levelled almost immediately from a free-kick.
The introduction of striker Paul O’Neill proved to be decisive for Larne as the former Cliftonville man grabbed the two goals that would ultimately hand them the win. Carrick did pull a goal back in the closing stages through a Cherry penalty after Cian Bolger was sent-off for handling the ball on the goal line, but the league leaders held on for victory.
Linfield remain a point behind Cliftonville in third after a 2-0 win at home to Coleraine. Chris Shields opened the scoring for the Blues with a first-half penalty before Eetu Vertainen sealed the win in the second-half.
Olajuwon Adeyemo and John McGovern goals gave Newry City a crucial away win at Glenavon, while Ballymena United and Crusaders played out a stalemate at the Showgrounds.
On Friday night, bottom of the table Portadown boosted their hopes of survival with a 3-1 victory over fellow strugglers Dungannon Swifts.
