Damien Duffy the hero as Finn Harps bounce back with a bang in Longford

Finn Harps came away from Bishopsgate with all three points for the second time this season, after goals from Sean O’Donnell, Ryan Flood, and Damien Duffy earned the Donegal side a three-two victory over Longford Town, with Christian Magerusan and Beineon O’Brien Whitmarsh scoring the consolation goals for the Midlanders.

Longford Town 2 Finn Harps 3

The home side dominated the opening ten minutes creating three chances as they put the Harps’ defence under serious pressure.

On five minutes, a James Doona shot from just outside the box on the left was superbly tipped over the bar by Harps’ keeper Tim Hiemer.

The resulting corner from Doona was headed against the underside of the visitors’ bar by Town centre-half Aaron Walsh who had timed his run into the box to perfection.

The Donegal side then had another lucky escape in the ninth minute as a left-wing cross from Ciaran Hodanu was headed narrowly wide by the towering Magerusan.

Harps settled after that and had much more possession without creating any real opportunities. Fifteen minutes passed before the next chance arrived and again it fell to the Midlanders, but Aodh Dervin blazed well over from twenty-five yards out.

The Ballybofey side had to wait until the twenty-seventh minute to test the Longford defence. A corner from Ryan Flood was headed back by Daithi McCallion, only for O’Donnell’s rising fifteen-yard shot to clear the Town crossbar.

Longford made the breakthrough on thirty-five minutes. A throw down the right from Longford found winger Joshua Giurgi and although his pass was intercepted by Harps centre-half Keith Cowan, the veteran’s poor first touch allowed Town striker O’Brien Whitmarsh to dispossess him, he played a pin-point pass to Magerusan who turned and drilled a low shot beyond Heimer into the bottom corner of the net.

The visitors had the last chance of the half, but Flood’s low free kick was easily gathered at his near post by Longford keeper Jack Brady.

The Donegal side equalised nine minutes into the second half courtesy of a calm finish from O’Donnell. A long clearance out of defence from left-back Shane McMonagle was cleverly headed on by Kevin Jordan into the path of O’Donnell and he dispatched the ball into the far corner of the Town net for his first senior goal in League of Ireland.

Four minutes later, Harps took the lead, when Flood scored his third free kick of the season, as his thunderous thirty-five-yard shot nestled into the bottom corner of the Longford net.

The Town were back on level terms in the seventy-fourth minute with a splendid goal. A throw-in on the half-way line from Gavin O’Brien found Giurgi, and the winger played a short ball into the path of O’Brien Whitmarsh, he exchanged quick fire passes with Magerusan which carved open the Finn Harps defence, O’Brien Whitmarsh raced into the box and slotted the ball underneath the advancing keeper Hiemer for the equaliser.

However, the visitors regained the lead on eighty-two minutes after superb play from striker O’Donnell who received possession on the right near the end-line, brilliantly turned his marker Hodanu, raced along the end-line before delivering a low cross that was expertly turned in by substitute Duffy, for his first goal in a Harps’ jersey.

Harps almost doubled their advantage on eighty-seven minutes. A corner from Flood was headed back across goal by McMonagle to Noe Baba on the edge of the six-yard-box, but he somehow blasted over when he should have scored.

Five minutes of stoppage time failed to produce another goal, and the visitors held on for a victory that moves them up to seventh in the table, while Longford Town drop down to ninth.

Longford Town: Brady, O’Brien, Walsh, Byrne, Hodanu, Giurgi, Dervin, Serdeniuk, Doona, Magerusan, O’Brien Whitmarsh.

Substitutes: Ibrahim for Doona (61), Verdon for Walsh (65).

Finn Harps: Hiemer, Porter, McCallion, Cowan, McMonagle, Jordan, Harris, Baba, Flood, Da Silva, O’Donnell.

Substitute: Duffy for Harris (73).

Referee: Robert Dowling.