Kerry sinks Derry

Kerry Taggart was the hero as Cliftonville Ladies claimed a 6-0 victory over Derry City Ladies at Brandywell Stadium this evening – with video evidence indicating that she netted FOUR goals, rather than the mere hat-trick she was originally credited with.

In addition to bagging the opener, Taggart notched the Reds’ fifth and sixth strikes but also laid claim to the third which had previously been attributed to Rachel McConnell until replayed footage suggested she did indeed get the slightest of touches on her team-mate’s delivery.

McConnell’s name was already on the scoresheet thanks to her smart finish to make it 2-0, while Toni-Leigh Finnegan’s second-half header set the visitors firmly on course for all three Danske Bank Women’s Premiership points.

After threatening through Erin Montgomery early on, Cliftonville broke the deadlock just before half-time when Taggart found the net with a close-range rebound.

Almost immediately afterwards, McConnell converted Clare Carson’s delivery to double the Reds’ advantage and, in the second period, Finnegan – playing less than 24 hours after she helped Northern Ireland Women overcome the Faroe Islands in their Euro 2022 qualifier – went close before that contentious third goal.

McConnell then provided the corner from which Finnegan headed home Cliftonville’s fourth ahead of Taggart getting a touch on Megan Weatherall’s wicked free-kick to make it 5-0 and then completing the scoring late on to put the seal on a welcome win.