Highly controversial ending and four red cards as Longford Town lose to Athlone Town in Midlands ‘El Classico’

Athlone Town recorded their second successive ‘El Classico’ victory of the season with a one-nil win over Longford Town at the Athlone Town Stadium on Friday night.

SSE Airtricity League First Division Round 17 - Athlone Town 1 Longford Town 0 

Frantz Pierrot scored the goal that sealed all three points for the home side in a game that produced four red cards, as Longford Town finished the game with nine players and Athlone Town ended the contest with ten players.

Athlone Town dominated proceedings in the first half and deserved their one-nil interval lead.

In the third minute, tricky winger Jamar Campion-Hinds collected the ball just inside the Longford half, he glided past defender Evan Farrell, raced into the box evading two more Longford challenges, before rifling a sixteen-yard shot from the left that was brilliantly tipped over the bar by Longford stopper Jack Brady.

The home side missed a great chance on fourteen minutes when striker Frantz Pierrot got ahead of Longford centre-back Viktor Serdeniuk, but his toe-poked shot was smartly saved by Brady.

The home side took the lead on sixteen minutes when Campion-Hinds whipped in a low curling ball from the right into the Longford box that was completely missed by Serdeniuk, and Pierrot pounced on the error to rattle the net from close range.

Athlone almost doubled their advantage two minutes later when Pierrot slipped the ball through to Aaron Connolly, but his weak effort was saved by Brady.

Longford’s only chance in the opening half came from an excellent passing move in the twenty-first minute. Aodh Dervin passed back to Cian Byrne, and he picked out Adam Verdon with a superb ball, Verdon turned his marker and knocked the ball out wide to Jamal Ibrahim on the left, Ibrahim cut inside the box and pulled the trigger, but his shot was saved by Athlone keeper Vladi Velikin

Athlone had the last opportunity of the half in stoppage time, but Pierrot headed over from a corner.

Longford almost equalised on fifty-one minutes. A Dervin corner from the left found Byrne at the back post, however, his goal bound header was deflected out for a corner off Athlone defender Rodriguez.

The visitors task of getting back into the contest suffered a huge blow on sixty-three minutes when Dervin received his marching orders for a second bookable offence after handling the ball on the ground.

Neither side created any clear-cut chances after Dervin’s dismissal, but there was plenty of drama in the closing stages, as referee Marc Lynch produced three more red cards from the eighty-ninth minute.

As the final minute approached, Athlone keeper Velikin was shown a straight red-card for an altercation with Town defender Byrne on the goal-line after a Longford corner ended in the ball going wide. Then in stoppage time, Longford full-back Kyle O’Connor was shown a straight red card for a tussle with Campion-Hinds, and a minute later, Longford manager Stephen Henderson was dismissed for his protests.

Athlone Town (4-1-4-1): Velikin, Duffy, Rodriguez, Van Geenen, Abdikadir, Hickey, Campion-Hinds, Connolly, Leal, Lennon, Pierrot.

Substitutions: Kavanagh for Duffy (44 minutes), McGlone for Leal, Dolia for Lennon (both 64 minutes), Minogue for McGlone (90 minutes).

Longford Town (4-4-1-1): Brady, Farrell, Serdeniuk, Byrne, O’Connor, Giurgi, Verdon, Fay, Ibrahim, Dervin, James.

Substitutions: Magerusan for James, Lynch for Farrell (both 70 minutes), Priosti for Fay (85 minutes)

Referee: Marc Lynch