Kieran ​Offord at the double in Crusaders joy over Cliftonville

​Early on, Jordan Stewart displayed clever control along the left wing and his delivery eventually dropped for Harry Jewitt-White but the attempt handed Lewis Ridd a safe save following a deflection. A flurry of activity featured Axel Piesold blocking Jordan Forsythe's Crusaders attempt before a Reds break ended with Rory Hale failing to find a team-mate from a promising position. The Crues produced some slick play late in the half when Forsythe fed the supporting Jarlath O'Rourke and the cutback dropped for Stewart but he was unable to gain a clean connection. Crusaders got off to a superb start in the second half - with Stewart smashing an effort against the crossbar, only for Offord to react first and force the ball over the line. Offord added his - and Crusaders' - second soon after by heading home a Stewart cross, having initially forced Ridd into a stop off Ross Clarke's delivery. Hale came close to cutting the gap with his half-volley hit but it just proved clear of the crossbar.

Joe Gormley could only slice a volley bid over the bar for Cliftonville but then forced Jonny Tuffey to make a save off his next attempt and the resultant corner-kick somehow stayed out despite Michael Newberry's downward header and Ryan Corrigan close to the line.

A packed penalty area featured Hale firing over inside the home box then Ridd's superb save stopped Clarke.