Neil Lennon's Omonia Nicosia lose 'garbage dump' Cypriot Super Cup final as ex Celtic boss watches from stands

Neil Lennon watched from the stand as his Omonia Nicosia team lost the Cypriot Super Cup final.

The former Celtic boss was serving a touchline ban so wasn’t permitted in the dugout for the showpiece occasion. But it didn't make for happy viewing as Lennon’s side went down 2-0 to last season’s champions Apollon Limassol. Lennon’s men were in the final after lifting the Cypriot Cup last term, which also saw them qualify for the Europa League playoff round, where they were drawn against Belgian outfit Gent.

Omonia’s chances of winning the competition for the 18th time were dealt a blow after just 12 minutes when Bagally Dabo put Apollon ahead after just 12 minutes. They doubled their advantage through Va on 73 minutes, meaning Petros Psychas’ penalty miss didn't prove costly. Limassol then finished the game with ten men after Andreas Panayiotou was dismissed with ten minutes left on the clock.

Former Celtic Park assistant Garry Parker, now Lennon's number two once again said after the match: "Obviously we are very disappointed. In the first half we didn't play that well, in the second we stepped up but we needed more. We really wanted to win, we conceded two goals from mistakes. We have to look ahead, improve, we have a big game on Thursday. We still need two or three players, we are looking, we hope to have them by the week."

The final was played at the AEK Arena, home of domestic rivals AEK Larnaca. However the match wasn't without incident in the stands either. Super Sport FM report that several parts of the ground were ‘turned into a garbage dump’, with fans simultaneously singing and booing the Cypriot national anthem They also held ripped up seats while ‘political slogans, objects and tensions’ were exchanged.

RE