OFFORD BAGS HAT-TRICK AS CRUES REACH SEMIS
Kieran Offord was the hat-trick hero as Crusaders swept past Dungannon Swifts at Seaview and into the BetMcLean Cup semi-finals.
The Crues raced into a commanding lead midway through the first half.
Harry Jewitt-White fired them in front on 17 minutes after pouncing on the loose ball from a right-sided cross and volleying past Patrick Solis Grogan into the opposite top corner.
Then, just six minutes after that, Offord doubled home advantage and opened his account for the night at the back post after Daniel Larmour had sent over a low cross from the right.
The Swifts were thrown a lifeline four minutes from the break. Tomas Galvin did well to find John McGovern in the area who, in turn, slotted the ball past Jonny Tuffey who couldn't keep it out despite getting a hand to the ball.
That was how it stayed until five minutes from time when, amid dramatic scenes, the Swifts levelled.
Presented with a penalty after Lewis Barr's challenge on Gael Bigirimana, Tuffey correctly dived to the right to keep out Kealan Dillon's spot-kick only for Leo Alves to pounce on the rebound and knock it into the net.
However the Crues made no mistake in extra-time after Offord doubled his tally for the evening on 92 minutes with a powerful strike into the bottom corner.
And Offord claimed the match ball just over ten minutes after that to kill the game off when he held off the challenge of Danny Wallace and finished low past the visiting keeper.
Crusaders: Tuffey, Weir, Lowry, Jewitt-White, Forsythe, O'Rourke, Offord, Larmour, Clarke, Franklin, Barr subs Kerr, Callacher, Stewart, Blaney, Williamson, Owens, Smith
Dungannon Swifts: Solis Grogan, S. Scott, J. Scott, Knowles, McGovern, Boyd, McGinty, Galvin, Maguire, Wallace, Bigirimana subs Dunne, Curry, King, Dillon, Alves, McAleese, Mitchell
Substitution 
Substitution 
