He may be a boyhood Linfield supporter but Joshua Cahoon left the Blues cursing their luck after snatching a late equaliser for Dungannon Swifts.
The young striker scored four minutes into stoppage time as the champions were held on a dramatic afternoon at Stangmore Park.
It maintained Cahoon’s remarkable record of coming off the bench to rescue Dungannon with a late goal, but none will have been as special as this.
Cahoon previously played with Linfield’s reserves and still has an affection for the club, but he showed no mercy when presented with the chance.
This is a point which will be much more valued by Dungannon than Linfield.
Leading through David Armstrong’s stunning strike, the Blues dominated the match and were seconds from claiming their fifth league win.
But they paid a high price for missed chances with Cahoon’s equaliser.
It was only part of the story of a dramatic finish, however, with the game exploding into controversy in the final seconds.
First Billy-Joe Burns was shown a straight red card for an off-the-ball incident then, on the final whistle, both teams became embroiled in an on-pitch fracas.
Later Terry Fitzpatrick and Armstrong were sent off for their part in the ugly scenes. Whether that is the end of the matter remains to be seen.
Both managers had other concerns on their mind and were keen to play down the controversy.
Darren Murphy preferred to focus on a rousing response from Dungannon at the end of a week which saw him threaten to step aside as head coach.
For Linfield boss David Jeffrey it was another frustrating afternoon, and he was left shaking his head on the sidelines after Cahoon’s equaliser.
His side have made a patchy start to the new campaign, including a dismal home loss to Ballinamallard last weekend, but they were ahead after 12 minutes on Saturday.
It may have come from an unlikely source but Armstrong showed all the technique of a forward as his 20-yard effort rocketed into the top corner.
Although a great strike, Dungannon will be disappointed that he wasn’t closed down sooner.
That set the tempo for a first half dominated by the Blues, who ironically were playing in their red and white away strip.
Stefan Lavery crosses the ball into the box
Armstrong went close again when he was picked out by Niall Quinn’s free-kick. His header had the goalkeeper worried but flashed inches over the crossbar.
The dangerous Peter Thompson also showed signs of his threat. An attempted chip over Niall Morgan landed wide while a turn and shot flashed off target.
Linfield’s dominance continued in the early stages of the second half.
Another inviting free-kick from Quinn was headed on for Burns, but the goalkeeper stretched out a glove to palm his header away. From the corner, Armstrong drilled a low shot wide.
Later a missed header allowed Burns in but his strike was blocked by the ‘keeper’s legs. The ball reached Damian Curran but Morgan did brilliantly to get a hand to his deflected effort.
It took an hour for Dungannon to draw Alan Blayney into action. Stefan Lavery outpaced his marker but his low shot lacked the power to trouble him.
But in a rousing finale from the home side, Ryan O’Neill worked the ‘keeper with a 20-yard strike while a long-range Chris Lavery drive also drew an impressive stop.
Burns then saw red for lashing out at Adam McMinn, yet it seemed the Blues would hold on – until Cahoon’s dramatic equaliser.
Emmet Friars’ ball forward wasn’t properly cleared, with the striker perfectly placed on the edge of the box to fire home.
DGN SWIFTS:Morgan, R O’Neill, Montgomery, McMinn, E Friars, Harpur (Fitzpatrick, 46), Hutchinson, S Lavery, S Friars (C Lavery, 46), S O’Neill (Cahoon, 80), McKerr
Subs not used: Topley, Brennan.
LINFIELD: Blaney, Armstrong, Murphy, Henderson, Curran (Fordyce, 82), Thompson, Burns, Garrett (Mulgrew, 71), Ervin, McCaul (Carvill, 71), Quinn.
Subs not used: Hanley, Browne.
Referee: Arnold Hunter (Maguiresbridge).
