Carrick Rangers were left to rue a cruel late collapse at Taylors Avenue, as a spirited display with ten men ultimately ended in defeat against Ballymena United.
The visitors made a fast start, opening the scoring inside two minutes when Success Edogun reacted quickest to a rebound and finished past Nathan Gartside. Carrick responded in swift fashion, levelling just four minutes later through Danny Gibson, who volleyed home from a Billy Joe Burns cross.
The turning point for the Amber Army came shortly after, when Ben Buchanan-Rolleston was shown a straight red card for a high challenge, leaving them to play the remainder of the match a man down.
Despite the numerical disadvantage, the Rangers continued to threaten on the break and were rewarded in the second half. Danny Gibson reacted quickest to pick up a misdirected header back to the Ballymena keeper, and fire home a second goal, giving Carrick a hard-earned 2-1 lead against the odds.
Ballymena pushed relentlessly in the closing stages and found their equaliser in the 88th minute, when Aidan Steele was called for a handball which Igor Rutkowski converting the resulting penalty kick. The late pressure proved decisive, as Rutkowski struck again deep into stoppage time, drilling home through a crowded area to complete the turnaround.
The Rangers remain 7th in the table on 47 points, still holding a nine-point advantage over Ballymena. Focus now shifts to the next fixture, with the Amber Army set to travel to Clandeboye Park on April 18th for a 15:00 GMT kickoff against Bangor, aiming to respond with another strong showing.
