SETANTA CUP GROUP TWO - Glentoran 1 Linfield 3:LINFIELD'S DOMESTIC and all-Ireland treble bid was bolstered last night thanks to Paul McAreavey's brace of goals at The Oval. The Blues, already in the Irish Cup final and top of the Irish Premier League with three games remaining, top Group Two after overturning an early deficit at the east-Belfast venue. David Jeffrey's men are now favourites to progress to the latter stages of the cross-border competition.
With the Belfast rivals preparing for Saturday's potential title decider at Windsor Park, this fixture was probably the last thing they needed and team selections reflected that.
Glentoran, aiming to jilt Linfield's aim of winning a third successive league title, took an early lead through Darren Boyce.
He struck after a poor clearance fell to Dean Fitzgerald, who provided the low cross for the goalscorer.
Linfield's response was positive, with McAreavey, Thomas Stewart and Peter Thompson all going close before McAreavey was gifted his first goal by Glentoran goalkeeper Michael Dougherty.
The Glentoran net-minder, starting his first game since his club's surprise Irish Cup exit in March, for which he was blamed, palmed Oran Kearney's 32nd-minute cross into the path of the midfielder, who drilled the ball into the net.
McAreavey was the recipient of another gift in the 49th minute. Lingering on the edge of the goalmouth, McAreavey returned the ball beyond Dougherty after Stewart's effort was blocked.
In the 54th minute Linfield defender Kris Lindsay remained on the pitch after he fouled striker Peter Steele. Lindsay, the last man when he committed his offence, escaped with a yellow card. Glentoran suffered a further set-back and again it was the product of a goalkeeping error when Mark Dickson scored a third for the Blues in the 69th minute.
The former Larne player weaved his way into the Glentoran half and thumped a hopeful effort 22 yards from Dougherty's net - the ball bouncing before creeping past the goalkeeper.
GLENTORAN: Dougherty, McGovern, Simpson, Ferguson, Glendinning, Berry, Carson, Fitzgerald (Halliday 73), Neill (McMenamin 46), Boyce, Steele (Fordyce 66).
LINFIELD: Mannus, Douglas, Gault (Burns 78), Lindsay, McShane, Dickson, McAreavey, Downey, Kearney (Curran 83), Thompson (Mulgrew 73), Stewart.
Referee: A Buttimer (Rep of Ireland)
