Blues beat Coleraine to stay top as Ballymena edge Ports

Linfield stay 2 points clear astatine nan Premiership acme acknowledgment to a 3-0 triumph astatine Coleraine.

Rory Brown's ain extremity came aft a Joel Cooper opener and Kyle McClean added nan 3rd connected 41 minutes.

Balymena United enactment 2nd pinch Ethan Devine's header connected nan changeable of half-time securing a 1-0 triumph complete Portadown astatine Shamrock Park.

Dungannon Swifts thumped 10-man Carrick Rangers 4-0 and Crusaders overcame Loughgall by nan aforesaid scoreline while nan Oval brushwood betwixt Glentoran and Glenavon ended goalless.

The 3 first-half goals had Linfield firmly successful power astatine nan break, a lead they ne'er looked for illustration relinquishing against an outclassed location side.

The visitors had a glorious chance to unfastened nan scoring arsenic early arsenic nan first infinitesimal erstwhile Cooper fluffed his lines successful beforehand of goal, but nan breakthrough wasn’t agelong successful coming.

Midway done nan opening half Matthew Fitzpatrick pulled nan shot backmost from nan byline into nan way of Cooper, who brilliantly recovered nan tile of nan nett from 12 yards for his 5th extremity of nan season.

And it was 2-0 5 minutes later successful bizarre circumstances.

Kirk Millar’s area wholly deceived Coleraine goalkeeper Brown, who fumbled nan shot complete his ain goalline successful beforehand of jubilant Linfield fans down nan goal.

There was still clip for nan convention leaders to people a 3rd earlier half-time arsenic McClean capitalised connected yet much slack defending to blast location from six yards past a helpless Brown.

It could person been moreover amended for David Healy’s side, but Brown produced a drawstring of good saves successful nan closing stages.

The location broadside offered small successful onslaught - Matthew Shevlin’s header against a station instantly anterior to Linfield’s 3rd extremity nan closest they came to scoring connected a time to hide for Dean Shiels and his players.

Ballymena should person gone successful beforehand wrong nan opening 5 minutes erstwhile Donal Rocks’ transverse from nan correct was headed complete from six yards by nan unmarked Ben Kennedy.

Portadown mightiness person taken nan lead connected nan half-hour erstwhile Josh Ukek controlled a dropping shot wrong nan punishment area earlier his snap-shot was turned astir nan station by Sean O’Neill.

The hosts looked to beryllium finishing nan first half powerfully but were deed pinch a existent sucker punch pinch a Ballymena extremity connected nan changeable of half-time.

Danny Lafferty released Josh Carson connected nan near flank and his transverse was met pinch a full-length diving header by Devine, pinch nan shot looping beyond nan scope of Aaron McCarey and going successful disconnected nan wrong of nan acold post.

Portadown wholly dominated possession successful nan 2nd play and missed a awesome chance erstwhile Steven McCullough ghosted successful down nan Ballymena defence to meet Eoghan McCawl’s cross, but his side-footed half-volley was consecutive astatine O’Neill.

The Ballymena keeper besides dived to his correct to drawback a Baris Altintop header.

Dungannon hammered 10-man Carrick astatine Stangmore Park pinch a John McGovern tap-in, Kealan Dillon stunner, Andrew Mitchell onslaught and Leon Boyd effort securing each 3 points for Rodney McAree's in-form Swifts.

Although it was nan visitors who looked nan much threatening successful nan first half hour, it was nan hosts who collapsed nan deadlock connected 33 minutes pinch a good worked group piece.

James Knowles' free-kick recovered Cathal McGinty, who squared nan shot to McGovern, and he couldn't miss from conscionable a fewer yards out.

Five minutes later nan Swifts doubled their lead pinch a rather exquisite effort from Dillon. He picked nan shot up successful nan mediate of nan parkland and unleashed a devastating onslaught into nan apical area past a helpless Ross Glendinning.

Things went from bad to worse for Stuart King's broadside arsenic Joe Crowe was past shown a consecutive reddish paper for his precocious situation connected Cathal McGinty arsenic nan Dungannon skipper was breaking forward.

The Swifts grabbed their 3rd 20 minutes from clip arsenic substitute Mitchell fired past Glendinning and into nan bottommost area earlier different substitute Boyd tapped location for their 4th to seal each 3 points for nan awesome Swifts.

Both sides had bully opportunities to break nan deadlock successful nan opening 20 minutes.

The location team's Andrew Hoey came adjacent successful nan 14th infinitesimal erstwhile his correct footed effort was a whisker wide earlier Jordan Forsythe’s header from Jarlath O'Rourke's free-was gathered by Nathan Gartside.

Just earlier nan break Conor McCloskey’s beardown onslaught from scope was palmed distant by Jonny Tuffey pinch nan rebound quickly cleared, to nan alleviation of nan travelling distant fans.

After nan restart Ross Clarke's free-kick recovered Jacob Blaney successful nan container but nan summertime signing took an awkward touch earlier sending his effort good disconnected target.

Kieran Offord past grounded to person 2 bully chances earlier Franklin headed Clarke's free-kick narrowly wide.

Their persistence yet paid disconnected arsenic Crusaders collapsed nan deadlock successful nan 75th infinitesimal erstwhile Franklin’s debased transverse from nan correct flank was converted by O’Rourke astatine nan backmost post.

in nan 84th infinitesimal Declan Caddell’s broadside doubled their lead successful style aft Clarke’s curling onslaught from conscionable extracurricular nan container pinged disconnected nan underside of nan crossbar and into nan backmost of nan net.

The distant broadside were past awarded a punishment aft Franklin showed awesome accomplishment down nan near helping and trim into nan container earlier being brought down. Forsythe took nan resulting spot-kick, firing into nan bottommost right-hand area past Gartside, who had gone nan correct way.

The goals weren’t done location though arsenic successful further clip substitute Stewart Nixon took advantage of a mix-up betwixt Jamie Rea and Adam Towe earlier travelling into nan container and slotting home.

The crippled was only a infinitesimal aged erstwhile Glenavon striker David McDaid had nan first effort of nan game, drilling a debased onslaught from nan separator of nan box, but it was good saved by Daniel Gyollai.

It would beryllium almost different 30 minutes until nan hosts created their first chance, pinch James Singleton’s acrobatic effort sailing complete nan barroom from 12 yards out.

Glentoran almost snatched nan lead connected half-time without having to touch nan ball.

From a free-kick retired connected nan right, a Glenavon defender hooked nan shot inadvertently towards his ain extremity wherever it was destined to driblet successful complete nan caput of Gareth Deane, but James Carroll was connected manus to clear distant to safety.

Frankie Hvid went adjacent for nan location broadside conscionable aft nan break, but his header was consecutive astatine Deane - however, nan champion chance of nan crippled fell to nan visitors connected 75 minutes.

Keith Ward's free-kick from 25-yards retired was half-saved by Gyollai onto nan ft of James Carroll, but he could not find a measurement past nan keeper from a gait retired arsenic he made different stop.

The shot past fell astatine nan feet of Barney McKeown, but nan defender could besides only occurrence into Gyollai from adjacent range.

Jay Donnelly went adjacent astatine nan different extremity earlier Glenavon could person won it 5 minutes from time.

A correction from Frankie Hvid allowed Harry Lynch to stitchery nan shot and title done connected goal, but his effort was superbly saved by nan advancing Gyollai arsenic nan 2 teams had to settee for a constituent apiece.