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Monday Monthly: April

With the 2022/23 season now formally under way, cliftonvillefc.net concludes a weekly mini-series reflecting on the good, the bad and the in-betweens of last term.

Every Monday throughout the summer, we’ve been taking a chronological look back on a month from the the year just finished – with April taking centre stage today.

Having enjoyed a lengthy winning streak in previous weeks, it was with a certain degree of confidence that Cliftonville approached their Samuel Gelston’s Whiskey Irish Cup semi-final showdown with Crusaders at Windsor Park.

Ahead when Joe Gormley converted early on, the Reds’ propensity for Irish Cup disaster reared its head for the umpteenth time as the Crues turned the tie around before the break courtesy of two own goals; Luke McNicholas and Luke Turner (above) the unfortunate contributors.

Frustrated by that defeat – and the incorrect offside call that denied Paul O’Neill just before Crusaders’ winning goal – Cliftonville returned to Danske Bank Premiership duty in convincing style when two Gormley (above) goals saw off Portadown at Shamrock Park.

A top-of-the-table encounter with Linfield ended goalless before a similar outcome in a home tie with Larne meant that just a single point continued to separate the Blues from the Reds with three fixtures still to play.

Commencing a run of three consecutive away games to finish the season, Cliftonville’s 2-1 victory over Coleraine at The Showgrounds – where Ryan Curran netted from the penalty spot ahead of Gormley’s latest strike (below) – ensured the Club’s automatic qualification for Europe for the first time since 2014.

With Linfield having taken three points against Crusaders on the same night, it was a much-changed Crues side that hosted the Reds the following Saturday.

A Colin Coates (below) header back on his old stomping ground divided the teams at half-time only for the hosts to pull 3-1 clear when Billy Joe Burns, Ben Kennedy and Jordan Forsythe produced quickfire finishes.

Cliftonville refused to fold, however, and began their comeback with a Curran snapshot from Levi Ives’ corner delivery before the striker doubled his day’s tally when he picked up the pieces from a Jamie McDonagh cross.

The 3-3 draw, combined with the Blues stalemate at home to Larne, meant the teams entered the final day of the Premiership season with the title still on the line.

Though few really expected Linfield to slip up against Coleraine, the Reds did actually top the table for a short spell that afternoon when Chris Gallagher broke the deadlock against Glentoran at The Oval.

By the time Curran had doubled the visitors’ advantage, the Blues were well on course for the win that would see them retain the Gibson Cup, but nothing could darken the mood of a Cliftonville support that had travelled to east Belfast in huge numbers to ensure the players received the send-off their efforts throughout the 2021/22 campaign deserved.


April 2022
Cliftonville 1-2 Crusaders
Gormley

Portadown 0-2 Cliftonville
Gormley [2]

Cliftonville 0-0 Linfield

Cliftonville 0-0 Larne

Coleraine 1-2 Cliftonville
R Curran, Gormley

Crusaders 3-3 Crusaders
Coates, R Curran [2]

Glentoran 1-2 Cliftonville
Gallagher, R Curran