BLUES AND CRUES DRAW A BLANK
Linfield and Crusaders failed to produce any goals in a Friday night clash at Windsor Park.
After a quiet start Linfield defender Jimmy Callacher was presented with an opportunity to break the deadlock but he couldn't keep a header from Kirk Millar's free-kick on target.
The Crues came close midway through the first half when Jordan Forsythe offered up a 25-yard free-kick that he curled right-footed onto the crossbar.
But it was a first half of few chances with the only other effort of note coming through Chris McKee but he could only fire over after Callacher had nodded on a cross from the right.
The second half did produce more in front of goal with Dean Ebbe carving out the first chance early on with an attempt just wide of the bottom corner from outside the area.
Linfield had the ball in the net soon after when Ethan Devine's close range header came back off the crossbar for Kyle McClean to tap him only for the officials to rule it out offside.
As the game progressed Paul Heatley offered up an acrobatic overhead kick that sailed just over while, with six minutes left, Linfield struck the woodwork again when Sam Roscoe nodded a Millar free-kick against an upright.
Linfield: Johns, Roscoe, Shields, Callacher, Millar, Cooper, M. Clarke, McKee, Finlayson, Devine, Mulgrew subs Walsh, McClean, Fallon, Haygarth, Vertainen, A. Clarke, Annett
Crusaders: Tuffey, Burns, Robinson, Weir, Lowry, Ebbe, Forsythe, O’Rourke, Winchester, Larmour, Heatley subs Murphy, Hegarty, Lecky, Owens, Thompson, McKeown, Clarke
Substitution 
Substitution 
