Irish League: Cliftonville closing the gap as ten-man Ballymena hold on

Cliftonville have moved to within four points of Linfield at the top of the Danske Bank Premiership after a hard-fought 1-0 win over ten-man Ballymena United at Windsor Park.

Linfield remain top of the table but have played two games more than the Reds, who have now won four of their last five league games.

Ballymena took the lead in the 16th minute when Leroy Millar played in Adam Lecky, who fired past Richard Brush. However, Cliftonville leveled things up just before the half-hour mark when Conor McMenamin headed home from a Jamie McDonagh cross.

The game took a further twist in the 55th minute when Ballymena's Steven McCullough was sent off for a second bookable offense. Cliftonville pressed for a winner but were unable to break down a resolute Ballymena defense.

The result means that Cliftonville are now just four points behind Linfield, who have a game in hand. Ballymena, meanwhile, remain in eighth place, seven points ahead of bottom club Dungannon Swifts.