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Stuart Kavanagh
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Danske Bank Irish Premiership
Updated: Oct 27, 2021
Goalkeeper Punches Teammate After Late Equalizer
There were incredible scenes in the Danske Bank Premiership clash between Glentoran FC, one of the biggest clubs in Northern Ireland, and semi-professional high flyers Coleraine.
The drama kicked off when Coleraine scored an 80th-minute equalizer via striker Cathair Friel. As Friel celebrated with his teammates, The Glens goalkeeper Aaron McCareymade a beeline for left-back Bobby Burns, appearing to strike him in the face. The infuriated 'keeper wasn't done as he grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, seemingly wanting to inflict more damage. McCarey was clearly incensed that the left-back was out of position in the build-up to The Barnsiders goal.
The incident wasn't missed by his teammates, as they were forced to separate the seething McCarey from the stricken Burns. McCarey's teammate and Glentoran center-back Patrick McClean threw the ball at the irate goalie in an attempt to separate the two.
Eventually, teammates managed to separate the two but not before referee Andrew Davey brandished a red card for the goalkeeper after consulting with his assistant.
Glentoran club legend Paul Leeman, who was on commentary duty for the match, described McCarey's outburst as "crazy" and "madness". This is what he had to say on commentary for the BBC:
“I’ve never seen anything like it, it’s a moment of madness, it’s madness from the goalkeeper. Yes, he maybe has a problem with Bobby Burns’ part in the build-up but you just can’t do that. That’s just madness. It’s crazy. I saw it when it happened and I couldn’t believe it. The players weren’t happy when he did that.”
Glentoran head coach Mick McDermott tried to dismiss the incident during his post-match media responsibilities:
“Is there trouble in the dressing room? No, absolutely not, the players are sitting in there. Nobody falls out. They’re all grown men. It’s an incident that shouldn’t have happened and now we move on. Two players got in a row, it’s happened before. It’s not nice, they are both disappointed with it and we move on"
By all accounts, the players had patched things up by the time they jumped on the team bus home. Regardless, it will be interesting to see what happens next time McCarey concedes a goal.
As far as the match went - Coleraine took the lead in the first half with a beautiful left-foot strike from some distance by Conor McKendry. Glentoran was level in the 51st minute when Jay Donnelly got on the end of a Gael Bigiramana ball to head over Gareth Deane. The Glens took the lead in the 66th minute from the penalty spot when Jay Donnelly converted after Burns was fouled by McKendry in the penalty box. Cathair Friel equalized in the 80th minute and the score remained 2-2 at the final whistle of an entertaining clash at The Oval in Belfast.
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