Dramatic scenes as Institute set up Premiership play-off against Ballymena United after late Michael Harris strike in Portadown win
While Portadown celebrated lifting the Championship trophy at Shamrock Park, opponents Institute also left delighted as they booked their spot in next week’s play-off against Ballymena United with a dramatic 1-0 victory.
There were many different potential promotion permutations heading into the final night of second-tier action with the winner of Annagh United and Bangor knowing victory would be enough while ‘Stute were hoping for a draw at the BMG Arena and victory over the champions in County Armagh – two scenarios which came to fruition.
Joint on points, Bangor held a goal difference advantage travelling to Annagh, who had lost only one of 14 league matches throughout 2024, and Kevin Deery’s men were one point further behind.
They’ll now host Ballymena on Tuesday evening before travelling to the Showgrounds for the second-leg on Friday with a place in the top-flight up for grabs thanks to Michael Harris’ late strike.
It’s a remarkable achievement for Kevin Deery’s men, who finished 11th in the second-tier last season and were only spared a relegation play-off due to Warrenpoint Town’s licencing issues.