Steven McCullough’s second-half strike sent Portadown home with three points against Crusaders and up to second in the Sports Direct Premiership standings.

F-T: Portadown 1 Crusaders 0

88: SUB (Crusaders) - Donnelly on for Clarke

86: McCullough attempts to take advantage of the strong winds with a curling left-foot free-kick but Tuffey is behind it

placeholder image — Portadown's Steven McCullough. (Photo by David Maginnis/Pacemaker Press)

84: SUB (Crusaders) - Williamson on for Lowry

76: SUB (Crusaders) - Owens on for Jewitt-White

72: Obhakhan just unable to direct Wylie's cross on target

68: SUB (Portadown) – McElroy on for Ukek

58: GOAL - Portadown 1 (McCullough) Crusaders 0

Low drive by McCullough from around the edge of the penalty area finds a path into the net to break the deadlock

57: Mayse and Thompson cut open the Crues backline and the former’s inventive effort to pushed away by Tuffey

55: Stewart denied by the crossbar for a second time in quick succession - this time off a delightful curling attempt

49: Stewart hits the bar as another dangerous Forsythe throw-in creates problems in the box and his effort is deflected on to the frame of the goal – possibly off MacKinnon - with McCarey then diving in front of the follow-up

46: No ballboys for the second half - it's understood under the instructions of the referee. Often across the first half the ballboys would not give the ball back fully to the Crusaders players...

H-T: Portadown 0 Crusaders 0

42: Stewart has two efforts towards goal - the first blocked and second collected by McCarey

32: Fyfe's pass is turned on by Obhakhan but Mayse is unable to gain a clean connection off his strike

28: Good work between Fyfe and Mayse off McCullough's forward pass but Blayney blocks the shot off Fyfe

26: Superb work by Chapman ends in a whipped cross across the box but just beyond the out-stretched leg of Ukek

25: Forsythe's clever curling free-kick hits off the outside of the upright

20: Obhakhan just unable to connect to Altintop's flick-on header inside the penalty area

17: Well-worked short free-kick to Thompson is fed out wide and Ukek slips the ball into Mayse's overlap run and cross with Obhakhan's back-post header turned out for a corner-kick

14: Mayse's cross is just beyond Obhakhan and Jewitt-White tracks across to prod the ball away from Ben Wylie inside the box

11: O'Rourke corner-kick is glanced over by Forsythe on the run

10: A burst of pace by Chapman along the right ends with a front-post cross towards Obhakhan's run but Callacher is across to block the threat

8: Crusaders a threat from Forsythe's deep throw-ins - with one flicked on by Larmour and Offord steered goalwards at the far post from a tight angle but McCarey was on hand to gather

6: Nice footwork by Stewart wide on the left to create space for a cross cut out by Chapman with Lowry free at the back post

PORTADOWN: Aaron McCarey, Baris Altintop, Lewis MacKinnon, Lee Chapman, Ryan Mayse, Steven McCullough, Eamon Fyfe, Ben Wylie, Josh Ukek, Ahu Obhakhan, Gary Thompson.

Subs: Jamie Ray, Douglas Wilson, Paul McElroy, Jack Henderson, Aaron Traynor, Jay Riley, Liam Mullan.

CRUSADERS: Jonny Tuffey, Jimmy Callacher, Philip Lowry, Harry Jewitt-White, Jordan Stewart, Jacob Blaney, Jordan Forsythe, Jarlath O’Rourke, Kieran Offord, Daniel Larmour, Ross Clarke.

Subs: Ryan Kerr, Josh Williamson, Jordan Owens, Malachy Smith, William Vance, Ryan Donnelly, Brandon Downey.

Referee: Christopher Morrison