SKY BLUES MAKE IT SIX IN A ROW
Ballymena United made it six wins in a row with a narrow defeat of Portadown at Shamrock Park.
Jim Ervin's side might have moved in front early on after Donal Rocks sent a cross over from the right for Ben Kennedy but the league's leading scorer could only head over from six yards.
Portadown had a couple of chances of their own in the first half with Josh Ukek doing well to control the ball and test Sean O'Neill before the same player connected with a Lee Chapman pass to curl the ball just wide of the target.
However the deadlock was broken in favour of the visitors right at the end of the first half. Daniel Lafferty found Josh Carson with a pass down the left who, in turn, sent the ball over for Ethan Devine to send a looping header past Aaron McCarey in off the inside of the post.
Portadown pushed hard for the equaliser after the break, with Ryan Mayse firing into the side netting after coming in from the right while Steven McCullough volleyed straight at Sean O'Neill a little while after that.
Noah Stewart might have doubled Ballymena's lead late in the game only to flash a header just wide, but Portadown came closest to salvaging a point in the closing moments after Ben Wylie sent over a cross for Baris Altintop but his header was well dealt with by the visiting keeper.
Portadown: McCarey, Altintop, MacKinnon, Chapman, McCawl, Mayse, McCullough, Ukek, Obhakhan, McCartan, Thompson subs Ray, D. Wilson, L. Wilson, McElroy, Fyfe, Wylie, Mullan
Ballymena United: O’Neill, Nelson, Lafferty, Rocks, Jarvis, Kennedy, Scott, McCurry, McCallion, Devine, Carson subs Johnston, Gawne, Moore, O’Donnell, Brown, Stewart, Devlin
Substitution 
Substitution 
