The ‘Gers started brightly and made their intentions clear early on. Inside the opening 10 minutes, Ryan Waide came agonisingly close to opening the scoring when his effort from just outside the six-yard box crashed against the crossbar, while Paul Heatley also went close with a header that drifted narrowly wide of Musa Dibaga’s goal. Crusaders briefly thought they had taken the lead against the run of play, only for the assistant referee’s flag to rule the effort out for offside.
Despite Carrick enjoying the majority of the early chances, it was the home side who struck first in the 25th minute. A looping cross from Elliot Dunlop evaded the grasp of Nathan Gartside and fell kindly for Fraser Bryden, who volleyed home from close range. Carrick responded immediately and were rewarded for their pressure when Jack Scott rose highest to head home from close range after a corner caused problems in the Crusaders penalty area.
The momentum stayed with the ‘Gers and they completed the turnaround soon after. Another scramble in the box saw the ball break to Aidan Steele, whose pinpoint delivery was met emphatically by Billy Joe Burns, powering his header into the net to give Carrick a deserved 2–1 lead. Crusaders almost levelled just before the interval, but Adam Brooks’ header struck the crossbar, ensuring Carrick went into the break ahead.
The hosts drew level early in the second half when Dunlop again delivered into the box and Kurtis Forsythe reacted quickest to poke the ball past a diving Gartside. Carrick showed good character to regroup and continued to push forward, creating openings throughout the remainder of the contest. Adam Lecky, Daniel Gibson and Heatley all found promising positions but were unable to direct their efforts on target, while Steele and Scott both tested their luck from distance without troubling Dibaga.
Late drama followed when Crusaders’ Evan Easton was shown a second yellow card for time-wasting deep into stoppage time. However, there was no time left for Carrick to take advantage, with the referee bringing proceedings to a close moments later.
Carrick Rangers return to Taylors Avenue on Saturday to face Glentoran in their first fixture of 2026, aiming to build on this performance and climb the table.
