Crusaders 1 Hako 0 (Agg 3-2)
Paul Heatley
Stephen Baxter
Little Paul Heatley blasted Crusaders into dreamland by hitting a priceless winning goal in the UEFA Conference League first round, second leg clash against FC Haka at a bouncing Seaview.
It was another glorious European chapter for manager Stephen Baxter and his team.
The Crues appeared to have done the most difficult part of the equation by gobbling up a 2-2 from the first leg in Finland last week.
After that excellent result, Baxter warned his players the job was only half done and insisted complacency wouldn’t be an issue. So, it was hardly surprising he nominated the same starting eleven that went into battle seven days earlier.
Again, they carried out their game plan superbly well in front of a bumper Shore Road crowd.
The reward for the Crues is a second-round home game against crack Norwegian side Rosenborg – plus the club will pocket an extra £200,000.
After Larne agonisingly succumbed to Finnish opponents 24 hour earlier when they were nudged out of the Champions League by HJK Helsinki, the Crues were in no mood to let it happen again.
Haka have had a horrible opening to their domestic League campaign, having won only two of their 15 games so far, leaving them second bottom in the table – the ruthless Crues piled on the agony.
They fully deserved the ovation that got at the finish, the fans chanting ‘standing up for the hatchet men’.
It was always going to be a tight, tense affair. Following the early bout of sparring, the Crues had the first sniff at goal on seven minutes. Ben Kennedy’s corner kick fell to Billy Joe Burns, whose shot was bravely charged down by defender Anthony Herbert.
The visitors were then awarded a free kick in a dangerous position
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