Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe felt it was 'harsh' to rule out his derby wonder goal for Derry City

JUNIOR Ogedi-Uzokwe felt it was a ‘harsh’ decision by the match referee to rule out what would’ve been a contender for goal of the season on Friday night.
Finn Harps keeper Peter Burke dives the right way to block Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe's penalty kick only to be beaten to the rebound. DER2219-103KMFinn Harps keeper Peter Burke dives the right way to block Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe's penalty kick only to be beaten to the rebound. DER2219-103KM
Finn Harps keeper Peter Burke dives the right way to block Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe's penalty kick only to be beaten to the rebound. DER2219-103KM

The Londoner had an eventful first half having produced a magical bit of skill to skip past Mark Russell before clipping the ball into the box where David Parkhouse was fouled for a penalty kick.

Junior was the designated penalty taker and while his tame effort from the spot was saved by Peter Burke he was quickest to the rebound and made no mistake when firing his close range strike into the net to give City a 32nd minute lead.

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And 10 minutes later he produced a spectacular overhead kick from 10 yards which nestled into the top corner. It was a beauty of a strike but referee, Tomas Connolly quickly ruled it out for a high boot.

It denied Junior a place in North West derby folklore and he was ‘disappointed’ to see his effort chalked off.

“I was very disappointed to have the goal disallowed but the ref disallowed it for a high foot, so it was very harsh but it is what it is,” he said.

“Three points was massive and that was the main thing. That’s our only home game for six weeks so it was massive for us to get three points.”

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The striker, on loan from Colchester United until the summer, was fouled for the free-kick which led to Ciaron Harkin’s stunning strike on the stroke of half-time.

Derry City forward Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe battles to find a way through a packed Finn Harps defence. DER2219-109KMDerry City forward Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe battles to find a way through a packed Finn Harps defence. DER2219-109KM
Derry City forward Junior Ogedi-Uzokwe battles to find a way through a packed Finn Harps defence. DER2219-109KM

And he also played a major role in Harkin’s third when he crossed low into the box during stoppage time.

It was an impressive performance overall and the perfect response in the aftermath of the 1-0 defeat to St Pat’s where Junior was guilty of missing a bagful of chances in the second half.

He predicted after Tuesday’s match at Richmond Park that he would make amends and he claimed he had a feeling he would score against Harps.

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“I wouldn’t say I had a point to prove but obviously I was happy to get a goal,” he said. “I’m more happy the team got the win. I wouldn’t say I had a point to prove but I did want a goal so I’m happy I got it.

“It was a poor penalty but luckily enough I got the rebound and scored but it was a very good game altogether.

“Before the game the gaffer said to me I was on penalties for this game so I knew before the game. I did feel I was going to score today especially after what happened on Tuesday so I’m just delighted to have scored.”

Talking through his goal and the penalty miss, Junior said he didn’t panic.

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“I didn’t panic. I saw it come straight out to me so I just thought ‘stick it in the back of the net’ and thankfully I did that. We just had to get the win today and see what we can do against Shamrock Rovers because any team can beat anyone in this league.”

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