Match Report v Coagh United – 24/1/26
Lisburn Distillery v Coagh United (Playr-Fit Teamwear Premier Intermediate League) – Saturday 24th January 2026
It was the first home game of the year on Saturday for Lisburn Distillery with Coagh United the visitors to New Grosvenor for a Premier Intermediate League (PIL) game.
The Whites were hoping to bounce back from a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of Oxford Sunnyside the previous week. In the meantime Barry Coulter’s men also went into this game with a less than great start to 2026 having lost two out of three games played in 2026 and let a two goal lead slip to draw with Dollingstown in the other one.
Not surprisingly, Distillery manager Lee Forsythe chose to make some changes to the side with goalkeeper Marcus Thompson replacing Ryan Kerr in the starting eleven. Ryan Sharkey and Caleb Crawford also returned to the side, Nathan Best made his full debut after being one of the few bright sparks as a substitute the previous week, and Ross Ferguson went straight into the team after joining on loan from Bangor during the week. The other players to make way were Aaron Sharkey, who was serving a one-match ban for yellow cards accumulated in the PIL, Callum Mills, Guillaume Keke and Dylan Davidson.
Distillery looked fired up for the game and the first action of note was Forsythe’s side taking the lead in the 4th minute. Benny Igiehon was brought down in the left channel and awarded a free kick; Jamie McDonagh stepped up and curled his free kick into William Hassan’s goal to introduce himself in style on his home debut.
The visitors sought to get back on level terms and in the 13th minute Zach Ferson saw a pacey low shot from the right ripple the Distillery side netting and moments before that Thompson had to save a shot from Matthew McMenemy with an outstretched leg.
With just less than 20 minutes played Ferguson found Igiehon in the box with a cross from the right but the Distillery top scorer, who had not found the back of the net since Islandmagee away in October headed wide. A minute later a high cross from, this time from the left, into the Coagh box was touched down by McDonagh to McComb but Hassan blocked his shot from point blank range with the ball bouncing off Jack Wilson and, to the relief of the visiting captain, behind for a corner.
There was a nervous moment for the home side in the 26th minute when Jordan Morrison attempted to head the ball back to Thompson and for a moment, it looked like the ball was not going to make it but the Distillery captain recovered to prevent Coagh from capitalising.
The Whites doubled their lead in the 31st minute when Igiehon collected a Dean Lewis throw in from the right, the powerful striker held off his defender and got a shot off on the turn but Hassan managed to parry it away. As the ball broke loose outside the box though there was nothing the Coagh stopper could do as Leon Lavery sent a beautiful first time strike into the back of the net from 25 yards.
Two became three four minutes later when Lewis found Igiehon with a free kick about five yards into the Coagh half, after McDonagh had been fouled. The former Ballymacash man held Joshua Busteed off with ease and turned to slot his 12th goal of the season home and end his recent goal drought with the player making his joy, and perhaps relief, known to all in attendance.
Coulter’s side were probably in a state of shock and the visiting managers mood will not have changed five minutes before the break when Best made it 4-0 to Distillery, scoring his first goal for the Whites on his home debut after latching onto a Lavery ball and escaping the attentions of Ryan McMenemy.
If the Distillery management had been looking for a response from the previous week’s defeat they certainly got it in the opening 45 minutes as the Whites went in four goals to the good with some supporters doubtless wondering if they needed to pinch themselves.
Half Time: Lisburn Distillery 4-0 Coagh United
There was a change of goalkeeper at the start of the second half for Distillery, Thompson had taken a bit of a clattering from a Coagh attacker as he attempted to punch away a cross right at the end of the first half so presumably due to that Ryan Kerr was introduced at the break.
The visitors also made a triple substitution at half time but it seemed to make little impact as the first talking point of note after the break was a fifth goal of the game for Distillery. The Whites defence stopped a Coagh attack just outside their box and quickly looked to counter with the ball making its way to Best on the left. The new signing from Ballyclare released Igiehon further down the left channel and while his cross was just out of reach of Ferguson and McDonagh, it found Callum McComb coming in at the back post and he connected with the ball perfectly to score his first senior goal for the club. A well-deserved moment for a player who last year received recognition for 10 years unbroken service to the club and burst onto the scene with a Man of the Match performance on his full debut against Rathfriland Rangers last month.
After this things quietened down for a while; in the 55th minute Sharkey knocked a Lavery free kick from close to half way down to Igiehon but the strikers shot was wayward this time and at the other end there was a rare effort from on the Distillery goal but Kerr was equal to Ryan McMenemy’s shot from range. There was also a brief stoppage while referee Neil Robinson addressed an issue with his footwear, eventually returning to the field wearing two odd boots.
In the final ten minutes, Forsythe introduced some fresh legs for Distillery with Logan Beattie and Callum Mills coming on for their home debuts alongside Ben Napier and Jay Torrens.
Three of these players would eventually combine to complete the scoring in the third minute of time added on. Morrison cleared the ball up field to Napier who immediately spread the play wide to Torrens on the left. The former Ballymena player outpaced the Coagh defence and sent a low cross across the box to Beattie who sent a right-footed shot across Hassan’s goal and into the bottom corner to score his first senior goal for the club with one of the first touches of his home debut.
In the end, it was a comprehensive win for the Whites with six goals from six different goalscorers, three of which were making their home debuts and one being an Academy product scoring his first senior goal for the club, being enough to seal three points in the first home game of 2026. Throw in the fact that both Distillery goalkeepers to play a part kept clean sheets, one of whom was also making his home debut, and it is fair to say not much more could be asked for and the previous weeks defeat seemed a forgotten memory.
We now look forward with optimism to a trip to the North Coast on Saturday to face Portstewart in the PIL.
Full Time: Lisburn Distillery 6-0 Coagh United
Lisburn Distillery; Thompson (GK), Lewis, Lavery, McComb, Morrison (C), Best, R. Sharkey, Igiehon, McDonagh, Ferguson, Crawford
Lisburn Distillery substations; Kerr (GK) (for Thompson, 46 mins), Mills (for R. Sharkey, 82 mins), Keke, Torrens (for McComb, 82 mins), Beattie (for Best, 90 mins), Napier (for McDonagh, 90 mins), Alfred
