Ronnie McFall received a guard of honur today at the Oval to commenorate his 25th anniversary as Portadown manager and then promptly pocketed 3 pts to celebrate the occasion.  Jamie Tomelty headed the Ports in front in the 69th minute and Kevin Braniff sealed the victory in the 89th minute after a wonderful move started by a bursting run from midfield by Shane McCabe who fed Matthew Tipton on the right wing and he in turn squared the ball to an inrushing Braniff who slotted home from 10 yards.  It was no more than the Ports deserved after McCafferty had hit the post in the first half and Tipton hit the crossbar.   Tipton made a surprise return to the Ports team after making a faster than expected recovery from a broken collarbone sustained against Ballymena Utd just 3 weeks ago.  Tiptons presence, although relatively low-key by his standards, seemed to give the Ports a better balance in attack with some of the responsibility lifted off Kevin Braniff shoulders.  The return of the Welsh Wizard couldn’t have come at a better time for the Ports who will be looking to consolidate their position at the top end of the league table in the run up to Christmas and into the New Year to maintain pressure on nearest rivals Linfield and Cliftonville. 

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