ST JULIAN'S ROAD ROCKS TO THE MERSEY BEAT
St Julian's Road rocks to the Mersey beat as Reds visit Town
BARRY O'DONNELL reflects on another memorable night for local soccer fans as Liverpool become the third Premiership side to visit St Julian's Road this year
For a dozen memorable minutes on Monday evening, reality was suspended.
The scoreline read: Unfashionable Irish League outfit, Omagh Town 1- legendary English and European giants, Liverpool 0.
This was indeed fantasy football!
And most certainly it was not the scenario which the Red hordes who travelled to St.Julian's Road en masse could ever have envisaged, but by the time the final whistle had blown the Merseyside glamour club had more than rectified the situation.
In the end Gerard Houllier's galaxy of stars managed to hit the back of the net seven times to mark a thrilling conclusion to Town's trilogy of glamour friendlies in aid of the Omagh Memorial Fund.
Once again the humble environs of Omagh's compact ground were packed to the rafters for the visit of yet another English Premiership Goliath, following the successful summer outings against both Chelsea and Manchester United.
While on the pitch these days Liverpool may, by their own lofty standards set in the seventies and eighties, have fallen on hard times, there was no doubting the magnetic and almost mystical appeal of the sight of the all-red kit for 7,000 adoring fans on this fresh autumnal evening.
The recent past of the Merseyside club has of course been closely associated with tragedy, and it will forever be indelibly linked with the Hillsborough Stadium disaster of 1989, which claimed the lives of 96 Liverpool supporters.
So there was always going to be a particular poignancy to their trip over to pay their respects to the people of Omagh and to participate in this fund-raising tie.
Soon after arriving in the town in the early afternoon, three of its top stars, Steven Staunton, Jamie Redknapp and Michael Owen,together with their French boss Houllier, visited the Garden of Remembrance on Market Street, to lay a wreath.
A card with flowers in the club's colours read: "In memory of all those who lost their lives on August 15 1998."
Teenage superstar Owen reflected: " We have come here to pay our respects to those who died and to those who lost loved ones. I am glad, we all are, that we have had this chance to pay our respects and to play for the people here."
Great credit must got to Liverpool for fielding a near full strength squad, despite being in the midst of a hectic playing schedule.
Donegal based D.J Charlie Collins once again acted as M.C for the evening, whipping up the crowd with some good-natured banter, although his Donegal brogue didn't adapt easily to the pronunciation of a couple of Liverpool's most recent imports, the names Djimi Traore and Eric Meijer proving a bit of a mouthful for 'our Charles'.
But the genial announcer was more at home rallying the supporters. His tongue-in-cheek utterance that the Manchester United crowd had been much louder prior to their game because 'they have more to shout about these days' ensured that the 'Pool followers quickly found their voices.
They were certainly cheering to the hilt as both sides emerged from the changing rooms onto the pitch, before a hush again descended on the stadium as both sets of team officials and players lined up in the centre circle to observe a moment's silence in tribute to those who died.
Then prior to kick-off Liverpool-based Country singer John Kennedy performed his own ballad 'Town of Tears' which he had penned in the aftermath of the Market Street atrocity. This track features on a tribute CD with all proceeds raised going to the Omagh Fund.
After that it was down to the action. While there was a tinge of disappointment that two of the biggest names, Owen and Redknapp started on the bench, there was ample compensation for the crowd as Liverpool fielded an array of seasoned internationals, including Patrick Berger, Dietmar Hamann, Vladimir Smicer, Titi Camara and Stig Bjornbye.
But ten minutes in the unthinkable happened when their part-timers opponents took the lead. A delightful ball over the top of a static 'Pool defence by Mark Donnelly found Harry McCourt and he rifled the ball low past Brad Friedel.
McCourt's cheeky post-goal reaction, getting down on all fours to impersonate Robbie Fowler's infamous line-sniffing goal celebrations, merely rubbed salt in the Reds wounds.
For twelve minutes Omagh were in dreamland but after Camara slid in at the back post to equalise the floodgates opened.
A brace from Meijer and close range header from Smicer meant Liverpool went in at half-time leading four-one although Omagh took some consolation from constructing the most eyecatching move of the half, Eamon Kavanagh and McCourt both combining superbly on the left before crossing for Barry Curran but his first time right-foot effort sailed just inches past the post.
St. Eugene's Brass and Reed Band entertained the crowd at half-time, their rendition of the Liverpool anthem 'You'll Never Walk Alone' naturally proving to be a particular favourite.
The Golden Boys Owen and Redknapp entered the fray on the restart, prompting dozen of flash bulbs to go off in the fading light as star-struck fans caught a glimpse of a couple of English football's biggest names.
Omagh though defended doggedly in the second period and it wasn't until the 68th minute that the 'Camara'of the Titi variety added to the scoreline. Berger then thumped home a magnificent left foot curler from 25 yards, while to quote Charlie Collins, Redknapp pitched in with a 'rare header' to round off the goal onslaught.
Owen's cameo appearance lasted for just twenty-five minutes, before he was substituted, but 'Saint Michael' and his colleagues had contributed wholeheartedly to another morale-boosting and memorable occasion for the town of Omagh.
Meanwhile Omagh Town secretary Pat McGlinchey is appealing to all sporting bodies and organisations still owing ticket payments for any of the three charity fixtures, to forward their cheques to the club by the end of this month.
BARRY O'DONNELL reflects on another memorable night for local soccer fans as Liverpool become the third Premiership side to visit St Julian's Road this year
For a dozen memorable minutes on Monday evening, reality was suspended.
The scoreline read: Unfashionable Irish League outfit, Omagh Town 1- legendary English and European giants, Liverpool 0.
This was indeed fantasy football!
And most certainly it was not the scenario which the Red hordes who travelled to St.Julian's Road en masse could ever have envisaged, but by the time the final whistle had blown the Merseyside glamour club had more than rectified the situation.
In the end Gerard Houllier's galaxy of stars managed to hit the back of the net seven times to mark a thrilling conclusion to Town's trilogy of glamour friendlies in aid of the Omagh Memorial Fund.
Once again the humble environs of Omagh's compact ground were packed to the rafters for the visit of yet another English Premiership Goliath, following the successful summer outings against both Chelsea and Manchester United.
While on the pitch these days Liverpool may, by their own lofty standards set in the seventies and eighties, have fallen on hard times, there was no doubting the magnetic and almost mystical appeal of the sight of the all-red kit for 7,000 adoring fans on this fresh autumnal evening.
The recent past of the Merseyside club has of course been closely associated with tragedy, and it will forever be indelibly linked with the Hillsborough Stadium disaster of 1989, which claimed the lives of 96 Liverpool supporters.
So there was always going to be a particular poignancy to their trip over to pay their respects to the people of Omagh and to participate in this fund-raising tie.
Soon after arriving in the town in the early afternoon, three of its top stars, Steven Staunton, Jamie Redknapp and Michael Owen,together with their French boss Houllier, visited the Garden of Remembrance on Market Street, to lay a wreath.
A card with flowers in the club's colours read: "In memory of all those who lost their lives on August 15 1998."
Teenage superstar Owen reflected: " We have come here to pay our respects to those who died and to those who lost loved ones. I am glad, we all are, that we have had this chance to pay our respects and to play for the people here."
Great credit must got to Liverpool for fielding a near full strength squad, despite being in the midst of a hectic playing schedule.
Donegal based D.J Charlie Collins once again acted as M.C for the evening, whipping up the crowd with some good-natured banter, although his Donegal brogue didn't adapt easily to the pronunciation of a couple of Liverpool's most recent imports, the names Djimi Traore and Eric Meijer proving a bit of a mouthful for 'our Charles'.
But the genial announcer was more at home rallying the supporters. His tongue-in-cheek utterance that the Manchester United crowd had been much louder prior to their game because 'they have more to shout about these days' ensured that the 'Pool followers quickly found their voices.
They were certainly cheering to the hilt as both sides emerged from the changing rooms onto the pitch, before a hush again descended on the stadium as both sets of team officials and players lined up in the centre circle to observe a moment's silence in tribute to those who died.
Then prior to kick-off Liverpool-based Country singer John Kennedy performed his own ballad 'Town of Tears' which he had penned in the aftermath of the Market Street atrocity. This track features on a tribute CD with all proceeds raised going to the Omagh Fund.
After that it was down to the action. While there was a tinge of disappointment that two of the biggest names, Owen and Redknapp started on the bench, there was ample compensation for the crowd as Liverpool fielded an array of seasoned internationals, including Patrick Berger, Dietmar Hamann, Vladimir Smicer, Titi Camara and Stig Bjornbye.
But ten minutes in the unthinkable happened when their part-timers opponents took the lead. A delightful ball over the top of a static 'Pool defence by Mark Donnelly found Harry McCourt and he rifled the ball low past Brad Friedel.
McCourt's cheeky post-goal reaction, getting down on all fours to impersonate Robbie Fowler's infamous line-sniffing goal celebrations, merely rubbed salt in the Reds wounds.
For twelve minutes Omagh were in dreamland but after Camara slid in at the back post to equalise the floodgates opened.
A brace from Meijer and close range header from Smicer meant Liverpool went in at half-time leading four-one although Omagh took some consolation from constructing the most eyecatching move of the half, Eamon Kavanagh and McCourt both combining superbly on the left before crossing for Barry Curran but his first time right-foot effort sailed just inches past the post.
St. Eugene's Brass and Reed Band entertained the crowd at half-time, their rendition of the Liverpool anthem 'You'll Never Walk Alone' naturally proving to be a particular favourite.
The Golden Boys Owen and Redknapp entered the fray on the restart, prompting dozen of flash bulbs to go off in the fading light as star-struck fans caught a glimpse of a couple of English football's biggest names.
Omagh though defended doggedly in the second period and it wasn't until the 68th minute that the 'Camara'of the Titi variety added to the scoreline. Berger then thumped home a magnificent left foot curler from 25 yards, while to quote Charlie Collins, Redknapp pitched in with a 'rare header' to round off the goal onslaught.
Owen's cameo appearance lasted for just twenty-five minutes, before he was substituted, but 'Saint Michael' and his colleagues had contributed wholeheartedly to another morale-boosting and memorable occasion for the town of Omagh.
Meanwhile Omagh Town secretary Pat McGlinchey is appealing to all sporting bodies and organisations still owing ticket payments for any of the three charity fixtures, to forward their cheques to the club by the end of this month.
Further Information
Publisher: ULSTER HERALD
Ref: UH/0588
Published Date: 21-Oct-99
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