Banks O’Dee Albion earned their place in the next round of the U17s Raymond Kelly Association Trophy after beating Glentanar CC in the third round at Woodside.  The weather was atrocious, with the torrential rain meaning that the pitch was heavy to play on.

It took Banks O’Dee only ten minutes to open the scoring as they were awarded a free kick just into the opposition half. Owen Duff played the ball into the box, catching Glentanar keeper Klayton Stewart by surprise and ending up in the back of the net.

Glentanar nearly equalised from a set piece soon after. Taken by Niall McKay, the ball was lofted into the box and met by the head of Ross MacDonald who placed his effort narrowly wide of the post.

A cross from Banks O’Dee from the left wing nearly put them two goals to the good as a deflection sent the ball towards the Glentanar goal. Quick reactions from Stewart and Robbie Paul ensured that that the ball was cleared and the deficit remained at one.

However, they could only keep Banks O’Dee out for so long as minutes before the half time whistle Josh Paton doubled the lead. A shot from Michael Mitchell was saved by Stewart but only as far as Paton who stayed composed to put the ball into the empty net.

As the teams went in for half time, Banks O’Dee seemed deserved leaders but Glentanar still had plenty of time left to try and salvage their cup run.

The rain continued to pour as the teams came back out for the second half and it was not long before Banks O’Dee had scored again. Misfortune befell defender MacDonald whose attempted clearance in his own box was sliced up and over Stewart, leaving him with no chance as the ball fell into the Glentanar net.

Two minutes later and Banks O’Dee scored again, this time through Andrew Mitchell. Mitchell’s shot from outside the box bounced awkwardly on the uneven playing surface, misdirecting Stewart who could not stop the ball from hitting the back of the net and putting Albion four goals to the good.

As the half continued, Banks O’Dee scored another two goals in quick succession to truly put the game out of sight. The first came from Mitchell once again as the ball bounced in front of him in the box, allowing him to place his shot into the bottom left hand corner and further extend the lead.

The second was a fantastic effort from Max Scoular who met a cross from the right wing with a venomous volley which soared past the helpless keeper and into the net.

With only minutes to go, Glentanar managed to pull one back. A shot from Aaron Arnott forced a save from Lucas Muller who could only put it as far as Josh Low. Low took his time with the shot, ensuring that the ball was rifled into the roof of the net.

In the dying seconds of the game there was more excitement for both teams. Just after Banks O’Dee had seen an effort headed onto the bar, Glentanar sped to the other end of the park as Ethan Still forced a good save from Muller. Launching a counter attack of their own, Banks O’Dee hit the woodwork again, this time a ferocious shot rocketing off of the post.

The final whistle signalled the end of what had been a game in challenging conditions. It was Banks O’Dee, however, who rose to the occasion and showed a quality performance regardless of the conditions.

Many thanks to both teams for an entertaining game despite the weather and good luck to Banks O’Dee in the next round of the cup.