We are delighted to announce Jamie Douglas, Ryan Harpur, Grant Hutchinson and Andrew Mitchell have all signed two year extensions from the end of their current deals.
Defender Dougie Wilson has signed to stay until the end of the current season with the option of a further year to be added.
As a club this is a very positive boost ahead of our game against current League leaders Crusaders at Stangmore Park this Saturday.
Conor Mullen’s first touch in league football was a decisive one, a winning one.
The teenager, a regular scorer at reserve and youth level this season, showed he can transfer that potential to the main stage by hitting a late winner at Coleraine.
Mullen was handed his debut six minutes from the end, at a time when a conservative change may have been a more persuasive option for Dungannon manager Darren Murphy.
Gary Browne had just levelled for Coleraine, finally applying a clinical edge to the Bannsiders’ promising but wasteful approach play.
But rather than settle for what would still have been a useful point, Murphy gambled, sending on Mullen in a move which was richly rewarded.
The win takes Dungannon to eighth in the table, although the relegation equation continues to change by the week.
Institute, their opponents tomorrow night, sit bottom, with Ballinamallard and Warrenpoint making up a four-way battle for survival.
The match itself was scrappy at times with conditions hardly favouring a free-flowing game.
Coleraine enjoyed spells of good possession but struggled to turn their dominance of the ball into clear-cut chances.
An example came inside the first minute when Ian Parkhill fed Shane McGinty, but the midfielder dragged his shot beyond the far post.
Dungannon’s opening effort came from a free-kick 30 yards from goal, but Ryan Harpur’s effort was safely gathered by Michael Doherty.
Some neat footwork from Andrew Mitchell saw him lift the ball over Stephen Douglas, but his finish did not match the impressive approach play and failed to trouble the goalkeeper.
McGinty went close again after cutting in from the right, only to drag his shot wide of the mark once more.
Coleraine hadn’t won any of their last five games and fell behind in the 27th minute.
Grant Hutchinson broke down the left and delivered a superb cross to pick out Mitchell, who headed home from close range.
The home side’s best chance of the half came seven minutes later.
Aaron Canning’s long ball found its way through to Matthew Snoddy. He tried to round Andy Coleman but the goalkeeper recovered to parry his effort away.
The game followed a similar pattern in the second half.
David Armstrong, celebrating his 28th birthday, marked the occasion with a great block tackle to thwart Mark Miskimmin.
Coleraine were proving wasteful in front of goal, and they spurned another glorious chance on 63 minutes.
Neil McCafferty’s pass reached Parkhill in the box, however, the striker could only deflect the ball wide of the target.
As the rain poured down, Coleraine’s frustration grew, and they struggled to break down a well organised Dungannon defence.
However, all that changed 10 minutes from the end.
A long goal kick from Doherty caught out the visitors’ back line, allowing Browne to race clear and coolly slot past Coleman.
So often this season late goals have been a feature of Dungannon games, and this one would be no different.
Unlike most other times, however, the Tyrone side were the beneficiaries as Mullen marked his debut by scoring the winner.
The home defence hesitated rather than dealing with a ball from the left, and Mullen poked home from close range with his first touch.
COLERAINE: Doherty, Hegarty, Douglas, Snoddy, McCafferty, McGinty, Canning, Mullan, Parkhill (Browne, 69), Miskimmin (Lyons, 82), Kane
Subs not used: Watt, Barton, Findlay
DGN SWIFTS: Coleman, Lowe, Wilson, Armstrong, Burns (Brennan, 25), McCullough, Hutchinson, Hazley, Harpur, Douglas (Mullen, 84), Mitchell (Liggett, 52)
Subs not used: O’Rourke, Fitzpatrick
Referee: Mervyn Smyth (Belfast)
Friday 16th January, 2015
Tonights fixutre: Institute v Dungannon Swifts at Riverside Stadium, Drumahoe has been postponed due to weather conditions.
Gary Liggett ended his barren run in front of goal with a classy double to fire Dungannon Swifts through to the last 16 of the Irish Cup.
The striker came off the bench to make a game-changing impact on this absorbing fifth-round tie.
He scored twice to end Ballinamallard’s cup dreams and set up a meeting with Championship One club Ballyclare Comrades.
Ninety minutes weren’t enough to separate the sides in a match which was high on drama and incident, if not quality football.
A storming start by Dungannon saw them race into a two-goal lead inside 20 minutes.
But a goal late in the first half from Johnny Courtney roused Ballinamallard into life, and they quickly took charge of the tie.
An eye-catching free-kick from substitute David Kee levelled it at 2-2.
But the visitors’ hopes were hit by Johnny Lafferty’s red card. His exit, and Liggett’s introduction, eventually saw Swifts through.
Dungannon now face Ballyclare and, while an away tie will be awkward, they have a terrific chance of making the quarter-finals.
Meanwhile, the Mallards can now focus on their primary objective of securing their senior status in the closing weeks of the campaign.
They showed tremendous character, battling back from two goals down despite missing a host of experienced players.
But Whitey Anderson will rue a poor opening half-hour which gifted Dungannon a two-goal lead.
The first came in the third minute and isn’t one Stefan McCusker will want to see again.
Matt Hazley’s tepid strike should have been a simple collect for the goalkeeper, but the ball somehow squirmed through his grasp.
Ballinamallard, missing six defenders, fielded Jason McCartney in a makeshift back line.
Therefore it was perhaps little surprise that they looked vulnerable each time Dungannon got the ball forward.
Dougie Wilson could have made it 2-0 but his left-foot strike from outside the box was parried wide.
Dungannon doubled their lead in the 19th minute after more hesitancy in the visitors’ defence.
Jamie Douglas timed his run to meet a terrific pass from Hazley. His strike was blocked by the goalkeeper but Jamie Glackin was there to drive home the rebound.
Perhaps it was too easy for Dungannon, and there was more than a hint of complacency about Ballinamallard’s goal.
A careless back pass from Andrew Burns was intercepted by Courtney and he aimed for goal, although his strike did benefit from a big deflection off David Armstrong.
It meant the second half was more competitive than it should have been.
Ballinamallard enjoyed plenty of possession, but it wasn’t until the 76th minute that their pressure told.
They won a free-kick on the edge of the box and Kee seized responsibility, curling a sublime left-footed effort past Alvin Rouse.
Extra time beckoned, but the Mallards’ hopes took a blow with the dismissal of Lafferty, controversially shown red for an off-the-ball incident.
Dungannon took full advantage, edging back in front in the 99th minute.
Douglas swung over a corner which Liggett met on the half-volley, with the ball taking a bounce as it squeezed past the goalkeeper.
And any doubts were ended at the start of the second period when Liggett ran on to a pass from David McCullough and scored with a classy low finish.
DGN SWIFTS: Rouse, Lowe, Armstrong, Burns, Wilson (O’Rourke, 57), Glackin (Fitzpatrick, 72), McCullough, Hutchinson, Hazley, Douglas, Mitchell (Liggett, 82)
Subs not used: Coleman, Sanusi
BALLINAMALLARD: McCusker, Phair (Kee, 63), McKenna, Carters, McCartney, Courtney (Elding, 82), Hutchinson, Foy (Currie, 70), Martin, Lafferty, Campbell
Subs not used: Murphy, N Beacom
Referee: Raymond Crangle (Belfast)
Dungannon Sw
ifts crashed to their first defeat of the new year as Glenavon came from behind to deservedly win this Mid-Ulster derby.
A stunning Kevin Braniff strike early in the second half was the difference at Mourneview Park.
And no-one could argue about the merits of the result, least of all Dungannon manager Darren Murphy.
“The best team won – I’ve no complaints,” Murphy said.
“I thought Glenavon were well organised, they played at a high tempo and their senior players led by example.”
Dungannon took the lead when Ryan Harpur netted against his former club.
But goals either side of the break from Rhys Marshall and Braniff saw Glenavon triumph.
Murphy added: “We got ourselves in front but it was against the run of play.
“Glenavon bossed it at the back, in the middle of the park and up front.”
A miserable night for Dungannon was completed when they lost full-back Cameron Grieve to what looked a serious injury late on.
After impressing as substitutes against Cliftonville, Jamie Douglas and Matt Hazley were both handed starts on Tuesday night.
And the latter provided the assist for Dungannon’s opening goal after 30 minutes.
The best move of the half saw Hazley take a pass from Douglas and play in Harpur. He timed his run perfectly to outpace the home defence and slot beyond the goalkeeper.
But Swifts’ lead lasted a mere seven minutes as Marshall posted a quickfire reply.
The teenager met a corner from Kyle Neill and, with Andy Coleman rooted to his line, he headed home from close range.
Otherwise it was a disappointing game with Glenavon shading the first half chances.
Early on Braniff’s corner fell invitingly for Ciaran Martyn, who dragged his shot wide from close range.
Later a free-kick was flicked on by Declan O’Brien but Martyn fired straight at Coleman.
Douglas went close for Dungannon at the outset of the second period, with his strike from the edge of the area clipping the post.
But Glenavon continued to carry the greater threat and took the lead in the 51st minute.
O’Brien released Braniff and the striker cut inside from the left, unleashing a sublime strike which curled beyond the goalkeeper’s reach.
Dungannon rarely looked like mounting a comeback, with another effort from distance from Douglas being gathered by James McGrath.
Braniff had a great chance to make it 3-1 but, after great footwork to find a gap, the ball ricocheted to O’Brien whose effort was blocked.
Coleman was also off his line sharply to deny Neill after the ball broke kindly for the full-back.
GLENAVON: McGrath, Murphy, Dillon, Marshall, Singleton, Neill (Hamilton, 89), McCabe, Martyn (Kilmartin, 71), Caldwell, Braniff, O’Brien (Bradley, 73)
Subs not used: Lindsay, Patton
DGN SWIFTS: Coleman, Lowe, Wilson, Burns, Grieve, Hutchinson (McCullough 81), Douglas (S Lavery, 65), Hazley (Liggett, 65), Harpur, Glackin, Mitchell
Subs not used: Armstrong, Sanusi
Referee: Keith Kennedy (Lisburn)
An 87th minute equaliser from Tomas Cosgrove denied Dungannon a famous victory against the champions in their first game of 2015.
The Tyrone side had been on the verge of finally ending a winless run in this fixture stretching all the way back to early 2008.
But for the sixth time this term, they were frustrated in the closing stages.
Both managers will view this as two points dropped, albeit for different reasons.
Dungannon were just three minutes from registering what would have been a massive win in the context of their season.
Meanwhile, Tommy Breslin admitted Cliftonville’s title hopes were hanging by a thread after a fourth straight game without victory.
The draw was probably about right, and in Swifts’ situation a point against the champions must be seen as a positive result.
They frustrated the Reds for long spells, with their makeshift defensive pairing of Andrew Burns and Dougie Wilson particularly impressive.
Cliftonville’s best spells came at the start and finish of a compelling game.
Early on David McDaid was fouled outside the box by Andy Coleman. Two covering defenders meant no action was taken against the home goalkeeper, who blocked Martin Donnelly’s resulting free-kick at his near post.
The Reds thought they had taken a 14th minute lead when Joe Gormley had the ball in the net after Coleman parried Martin Murray’s strike. However, the assistant referee correctly disallowed his tap-in for offside.
Dungannon failed to test Reds stopper Conor Devlin once in a scrappy opening period.
Their best effort fell to Abby Sanusi, but the winger drilled his left-foot strike over after Jamie Glackin’s corner had been flicked on.
There was controversy when a strong challenge on Glackin by George McMullan resulted in a yellow card, with Dungannon believing the visitors’ captain got off lightly.
Views were exchanged on the touchline, as Swifts boss Darren Murphy expressed his displeasure to Breslin.
The game improved in the second period, starting with a good chance for Cliftonville.
Gormley’s effort from a tight angle was blocked by the goalkeeper, the ball reached Murray at the back post but his strike hit Cameron Grieve.
After a hassle-free opening hour, Devlin was called into action three times in as many minutes.
His first save was simple, gathering a tame effort from Kris Lowe after the teenager had glided through the visitors’ defence.
The second proved more awkward, diving to his left to push Glackin’s free-kick wide.
But Devlin’s best save came from the resulting corner, when he stretched out a glove to block Mitchell’s flicked effort.
Dungannon were growing in confidence and scored in the 75th minute.
Jamie Douglas cut in from the left, cutting past Eamonn Seydak before drilling the ball across goal for Mitchell to tap home.
It wasn’t quite as eye-catching as Mitchell’s last goal against Glentoran, but it was just as important.
However, Dungannon have a habit of conceding late in games, and their old problem struck again.
Donnelly pumped the ball into the box, James Knowles’ shot fell short but Cosgrove was perfectly placed to rifle home the equaliser.
DGN SWIFTS: Coleman, Lowe, Burns, Wilson, Grieve, McCullough, Harpur (Douglas, 64), Hutchinson, Sanusi (Hazley 60), Glackin, Mitchell (Liggett, 88)
Subs not used: S Lavery, O’Rourke
CLIFTONVILLE: Devlin, Flynn (McGovern, 41), McMullan, McDaid (McCarron, 71), Donnelly, Seydak, Smyth, Winchester (Knowles, 73), Gormley, Murray, Cosgrove
Subs not used: Donnelly, Mulvenna
Referee: Ross Dunlop (Carrick)