2020-21 Season Review: November

NOVEMBER would prove to be a poor month for the Bannsiders as defensive injuries and inconsistent performances resulted in zero wins…

The month would start with a visit to Mourneview Park in what would prove to be an entertaining affair. Coleraine would start the game well and took an early lead through Stewart Nixon but were reduced to ten men with less than 15 minutes played as Gareth McConaghie received a straight red card. Despite this setback, Coleraine went two goals ahead as Ben Doherty fired home but back came Glenavon to restore parity through two quick goals from Conor McCloskey and Danny Purkis. Remarkably, there would be a fifth goal before the break as Doherty fired home from the spot after Lyndon Kane was fouled inside the box. On 59 minutes, Kearney’s men would go further in front as a poor back pass was seized upon by Glackin and he had the vision to pick out Doherty who slammed home his hat-trick at the second attempt for his eighth goal of the season. However, the game would take a massive turn on 68 minutes as Glenavon were awarded a penalty as Steven Douglas brought down Daniel Larmour inside the box. The confident O’Connor would dispatch his spot kick beyond the reach of Deane to reduce the arrears. Incredibly, ten minutes later, the Mid-Ulster side would level again as a cross wasn’t cleared by the Coleraine defence and after Deane made a great save at the back post, Fitzpatrick was on hand to steer the ball over the line despite the best efforts of Josh Carson to keep the ball out as the game finished 4-4.

Coleraine would then face Crusaders three days later at Seaview and the first-half was a cagey affair in North Belfast. Bradley and Stewart Nixon would combine at the edge of the box to tee up Ben Doherty but his goal bound effort was blocked by the Crusaders defence. At the other end, Ross Clarke’s corner kick met the head of Philip Lowry, and just when it looked like the ball was going into the net, Gareth Deane made a superb stop to deny the midfielder. In front of the Sky Sports cameras, the fixture looked like it was always going to be settled by a single goal and it went in the way of Crusaders as Jordan Owens headed home from Jordan Forsythe’s free-kick.

The big games just kept on coming as reigning champions Linfield made the visit to the Ballycastle Road. The Blues made all the early running as  Andrew Waterworth powered his way into the box but he failed to hit his effort on target. Three minutes later, Jordan Stewart took a neat touch and released the run of Niall Quinn but the midfielder’s strike was straight into the arms of Gareth Deane. However, on 32 minutes, Linfield’s pressure paid off as a defensive mistake from Lyndon Kane was pounced upon by Quinn and he crossed for Waterworth who couldn’t miss from close range.

The Bannsiders were due to play Carrick Rangers on November 21 but this was postponed in line with NIFL’s COVID-19 policy, meaning a home clash against Larne ended the month. After making a bright start, Coleraine fell behind on 11 minutes as a long ball by Albert Watson was met by Ronan Hale and after the striker was able to hold the ball up, McDaid unleashed an unstoppable effort beyond the reach of Deane. The Stripes changed their shape before the 20 minute mark as James McLaughlin was introduced at the expense of Steven Douglas but Larne should have doubled their lead on 26 minutes as Hale fired wide after Graham Kelly was unable to dispatch an effort on goal. The hosts would spurn a great chance on 39 minutes as a brilliant set piece delivery by Ben Doherty found Aaron Jarvis at the back post but he was unable to direct his header past Conor Devlin. That miss would prove costly 60 seconds later as the visitors grabbed a second as Herron and McDaid combined, with the ex-Coleraine striker finishing past Deane for his second of the afternoon. After the introduction of Eoin Bradley, the Bannsiders started to create more opportunities as Traynor headed over the crossbar, before Glackin’s cross met Bradley but he couldn’t direct his header past Devlin. On 77 minutes, there would be further frustration as McLaughlin’s driven shot was parried by Devlin with Glackin prodding the rebound wide as Larne recorded their first win against Coleraine in 16 years.