Five-star tribute

Rory Hale believes Cliftonville did Michael Newberry proud by roaring to victory in yesterday’s BetMcLean Cup Final.

Having come close to scoring on numerous occasions throughout a frantic Windsor Park showdown with Glentoran, the Reds eventually bagged the only goal of the game when Joe Gormley poked home nine minutes into extra-time.

Afterwards, Newberry’s jersey – which had taken pride of place in the dressing room before the game – was placed front and centre as Hale lifted the NI Football League’s flagship knockout trophy, with the skipper commending his team-mates for how they have gone about their business in the absence of a much-missed colleague and friend.

“Michael’s shirt was the first thing we all recognised this morning when we got on the bus,” he explained.

“NIFL had put a lovely tweet that his shirt was up and everyone just looked at each other and went ‘Yeah, yeah – big time, big time’.

“Not many teams have a current team-mate that passes away, never mind that young, and the way this group of young players have dealt with losing a team-mate and losing a housemate has been absolutely remarkable.

“Every single player has done Michael Newberry proud today and he was definitely in all our thoughts.”