COOPER SALVAGES COMEBACK WIN FOR HOLDERS
BetMcLean Cup holders Linfield survived an early scare to progress to the next round of the competition with victory over Queens University.
The shock opening came with a goal for Queens after just nine minutes, as a free-kick from the visitors dropped to Stewart Nixon inside the box and he cooly turned and finished past Walsh into the bottom corner.
Linfield turned up the pressure and came back into the game on 27 minutes as McBrien played a neat through ball to Cooper who scored the equaliser for the Blues.
Cooper put the cup holders ahead on 63 minutes as following two blocked attempts by Kirk Millar, the ball fell kindly to the talented winger and he took no hesitation in firing the ball past Pauley to put Linfield in front for the first time in the game.
Substitute John Robertson ensured Linfield’s passage to the next round as he latched onto a long ball and held off the challenge of Ovens to roll the ball cooly under the goalkeeper for the home side’s third goal of the night.
Linfield: Walsh, McKay, Newberry, East, Scott, Millar, Archer, Cooper, McBrien, Fitzpatrick, Mulgrew subs Johns, Robertson, Haygarth, Graham, O’Neill, Doherty, Annett
Queens University: Pauley, Ovens, McKenna, Corry, Smyth, Bonnes, Middleton, Mulgrew, Nixon, Mairs, Withers subs Kerr, O’Hare, McIlroy, Calvert, Anderson, McManus, Brown
Substitution 
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