PORTS PUNISH NINE-MAN REDS
Two goals at either end of the first half saw Portadown ultimately defeat Cliftonville at Shamrock Park.
Niall Currie's side moved in front as early as the fourth minute through Ryan Mayse after he showed great composure to take the ball past keeper David Odumosu and into the net after running onto a Josh Ukek through ball.
The Reds thought they had levelled ten minutes later after Joe Gormley had taken the ball round keeper Aaron McCarey only for his finish to be ruled out offside.
Cliftonville were reduced to ten men around the half-hour mark when Conor Pepper received his second caution in a matter of minutes from a challenge on Ben Wylie after being previously booked for a foul on Lee Chapman.
And it got worse for the Reds on 45 minutes after Jonny Addis became their second player to be sent-off after bringing down Eamon Fyfe … and then in first half stoppage time Ahu Obhakhan doubled the home lead with a flicked finish past Odumosu after Chapman had sent over a low cross from the right.
Portadown skipper Gary Thompson looked to add a third early in the second half but his snapshot went just wide of the target before play switched to the other end for Gormley to play Rory Hale through only for McCarey to rush off his line to deal with the danger.
Thompson was then later called into action in defence to get in the way of a Micheal Glynn effort from a Ronan Doherty set piece as Cliftonville fruitlessly looked to salvage something from the game.
Portadown: McCarey, Altintop, MacKinnon, Chapman, Mayse, McCullough, Fyfe, Wylie, Ukek, Obhakhan, Thompson subs Ray, Wilson, McElroy, Henderson, Traynor, Riley, Mullan
Cliftonville: Odumosu, Pepper, Addis, Kearney, Hale, Curran, Doherty, Gormley, Glynn, Casey, Steven subs Ridd, Newberry, Pettifer, Piesold, Markey, Corrigan, Madden
Substitution 
Substitution 
