BLUES WIN BIG TOP OF THE TABLE CLASH
Linfield opened up an eight point lead at the top of the table with victory over second placed Cliftonville at Solitude.
Scoreless at the break, the Blues might have moved in front midway through the first half when Jamie Mulgrew sent the ball into the box only for Matthew Fitzpatrick to meet it with a header wide of the target.
Cliftonville had penalty appeals waved away when they claimed the ball had struck Euan East's arm from a Ben Wilson cross, with Wilson later being denied by Chris Johns as he tested the Linfield keeper with an effort from Odhran Casey's ball forward.
The Reds also had chances through Ronan Doherty and Joe Gormley, albeit both from distance, while Kirk Millar wasn't able to keep a strike from the edge of the area on target.
Millar had another go early in the second half before play switched for Rory Hale to produce a great save from Johns.
Johns was also called into action to thwart Gormley again, with another Hale effort being touched over the top by the visiting keeper.
And Jim Magilton's side came even closer after Wilson latched onto a loose ball on the edge of the area only for his subsequent strike to hit an upright before Johns cleared the danger.
It proved to be turning point in the game when, on 77 minutes, Chris McKee grabbed what turned out to be the winner when he got on the end of a poor clearance to lift the ball over home keeper David Odumosu.
McKee then almost doubled his tally for the evening when he won control of the ball and looked to find the bottom corner only for his effort to drift narrowly wide.
Cliftonville: Odumosu, Addis, Gallagher, Rory Hale, Jordan, Doherty, Gormley, Casey, Turner, Kearney, Wilson subs Gartside, Kenny, Curran, Mallon, Lowe, Ashford, Ronan Hale
Linfield: Johns, East, Newberry, Shields, Millar, McClean, Cooper, Hall, Clarke, Mulgrew, Fitzpatrick subs Walsh, McBrien, McKee, Haygarth, Annett, Archer, Doherty
Substitution 
Substitution 
