Irish League Football

Image source, Press Eye

Dungannon Swifts boss Rodney McAree is relishing taking on Premiership leaders Linfield at Stangmore Park on Tuesday night.

The Swifts moved up to second spot on Saturday with a 1-0 win at Ballymena United and sit eight points behind the Blues.

"We look forward to it, it's one we'll enjoy and it will be a great spectacle," said McAree.

"It's a game against one of the biggest clubs in Ireland at home under the lights - we'll challenge ourselves again and try to get something."

Linfield manager David Healy, who saw his side beat Coleraine 3-0 at the weekend, is wary of threat posed by Dungannon.

"We've had some tight, tough games down at Stangmore and we know the level of opposition that they are," he said.

"Rodney's done an incredible job since he's been back in so we know the challenge. They had a strong win at Ballymena and are riding the crest of a wave at the minute."

Glenavon host Crusaders in the league while there is also a BetMcLean Cup quarter-final between Ballymena and Glentoran at the Showgrounds.

Sky Blues boss Jim Ervin told him team after the defeat by Dungannon that he wants a response against the Glens.

"It's going to be another huge game for us but, as I said to the players, I expect a response on Tuesday night because again it was another home performance that wasn't good enough and I demand better."

We'll bring you live text commentary and in-play clips from all three matches on the BBC Sport website

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Loughgall manager Dean Smith confessed to "mixed emotions" after his bottom-placed side's goalless Irish Premiership draw with fellow strugglers Carrick Rangers.

Smith felt Loughgall were the "better team" over the 90 minutes but there was also a sense of relief after his goalkeeper Nathan Gartside saved two second-half Carrick penalties.

"Disappointed we didn't win but also delighted that we got a point given that we had two penalties given against us," Smith told BBC Sport NI.

"We created good opportunities. We got into the final third a lot but if I'm being totally honest, we probably never worked their goalkeeper as much as we would have liked given the opportunities that we had."

Smith also felt his side should have been awarded a "stonewall penalty" in the closing moments of the game for a challenge on substitute Jay Boyd.

"Given what he [the referee] has just given, I think that's a penalty all day long," added the Loughgall boss.

"I don't think there was a bad tackle in the game but again it ends up with six or seven bookings. It is a contact sport. We are allowed contact in it and not every contact is a foul."

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Carrick Rangers manager Stephen Baxter lamented his side's two penalty misses in a 0-0 Irish Premiership draw against Loughgall that he described as a "horrible game of football".

Loughgall goalkeeper Nathan Gartside saved David Cushley's spot-kick in the 58th minute and then stopped Danny Gibson's penalty five minutes from time with Paul Heatley blazing the rebound over the bar.

"On the whole, the ball was in the air far too much. There was no football played," said the Carrick boss.

"Not one I will want to watch back any time soon. But when you get two penalty opportunities, you've got to score one of them and to miss both of them, we'll be very disappointed.

"Credit the goalkeeper. He guessed right and made two very fine saves."

Baxter added: "I thought we got the ball down and knocked it about better in the second half and hence we created a couple of chances and certainly the one for Danny's penalty was a very good move where we broke the line.

"But there were very few lines broken today. Any chances were coming from set plays or a shot from outside the box or something. It was a very scrappy game of football."

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Dean Shiels admitted the January transfer window is going to be crucial for his "patched up" Coleraine squad after they suffered a 3-0 defeat by leaders Linfield in the Irish Premiership.

Matthew Fitzpatrick's 29th-minute goal gave the Blues a 1-0 lead at half-time and while Coleraine had their moments in the third quarter, a superb Joel Cooper effort and Fitzpatrick's second goal rounded off ultimately a comfortable win for the home side.

"We came here knowing it was going to be difficult. We gave it a go but it just wasn't good enough," Shiels told BBC Sport Northern Ireland.

Coleraine now have a break from competitive action until Boxing Day which Shiels admitted that he was "glad of".

"We're really patched up at the minute. It's difficult especially when we're asking young players to come in.

"What Senan Devine got out of playing against Joel Cooper today and Fitzpatrick will be great. I thought Corey Smith at 19 was outstanding. Kyle Spence who hasn't played in months came on and did well."

Shiels added that a "lot of hard work" has already been done in terms of securing new playing personnel come next month.

"We're delighted about how that's looking but we still have two games left before there can be any movement in that regard."

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Cliftonville assistant manager Gerard Lyttle said the nine-man Reds "beat ourselves" with their dismal and ill-disciplined first-half performance in the 2-0 Irish Premiership defeat by Portadown.

Ryan Mayse's fourth-minute goal gave the Ports a deserved lead and Ahu Obhakhan doubled their advantage in first-half injury-time after Reds pair Conor Pepper and Jonny Addis were red carded.

"I just said to the lads, credit to Portadown for winning but I don't think Portadown have beaten us, I think we've beaten ourselves especially in the first-half performance," said the Cliftonville assistant boss, who took charge of the Reds as manager Jim Magilton was serving a ban.

Lyttle described Cliftonville's defending for Mayse's early goal as "poor" before things went from bad to worse amid what he described as the "chaos" of the red cards suffered by Pepper and Addis, which the Reds assistant didn't quibble about.

"We were trying to get in at half-time, lick our wounds, 1-0 down with 10 men.

"Things can be different and we can look at changing a few things but when you lose two men in the first half, it's a mountain to climb."

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Portadown manager Niall Currie heaped praise on his players after their 2-0 Irish Premiership win over nine-man Cliftonville which moved the Shamrock Park outfit up to third spot in the table.

Ryan Mayse's fourth-minute goal gave the Ports a deserved lead and Ahu Obhakhan doubled their advantage in first-half injury-time after Reds pair Conor Pepper and Jonny Addis were red carded.

"The first half was brilliant. Whenever you come up against the kind of quality that Cliftonville have, you have to stay in the game for the initial 15, 20 minutes," said Currie.

"We started really well. We had a lot about us. Our endeavour was good, our hunger was good and our control of the game was pretty decent."

The Ports were already bossing the game when Pepper was sent off at the hour hour mark after picking up his second yellow card in four minutes.

"We were at a high level in the first half. We had a good balance about us. We had great options in wide areas. We carried a threat throughout the whole game," added Currie.

But while thrilled with his players' display, Currie insisted that his players must not get "carried away".

"We're over the moon at the situation we're in at the moment but we also understand that football changes very quickly and I know that as a manager.

"We've got to keep focusing and working hard."

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Linfield manager David Healy has praised the contribution made to his team by forward Matthew Fitzpatrick.

The former Glenavon player scored twice in his side's 3-0 win over Coleraine at Windsor Park on Saturday as the Blues moved eight points clear at the top of the table.

"First and foremost his work ethic, his hunger to keep going and playing," said Healy of Fitzpatrick's qualities.

"His performance merited his goals today. There have been plenty of performances he's given us this season where he hasn't been on the scoresheet.

"There have been times this season when he has basically been the only fit centre forward that we have. He very rarely misses too many games which is an absolute credit to him."

Fitzpatrick has on occasions attracted criticism for his goal tally but Healy believes the player brings much to the team.

"I've no doubt he knows the challenges here and people tally up the games that he's played and the goals but he knows what I think of him.

"If he continues doing the job that he's done for a long time now and he can add one or two goals like he did today then we'll settle for that."

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Dungannon Swifts manager Rodney McAree praised the "perseverance" of his players as they secured an "ugly" 1-0 win over Ballymena United to elevate themselves to second place in the Irish Premiership.

Substitute Andy Mitchell's 85th-minute penalty after Joseph Moore had been penalised for a rash challenge in the area secured victory for the visitors to the Showgrounds, who sit eight points behind leaders Linfield.

"We did the simple things well and got our just rewards in playing it simply, passing it simply, getting an opportunity in the 18-yard box and thankfully we get the penalty kick which leads to the winning goal," reflected McAree.

"It was a case of perseverance, keep a clean sheet and hopefully the goal will come for us. The boys deserve immense credit."

Ballymena goalkeeper made a string of outstanding saves in the first half in a keenly contested encounter.

"I thought we created the better opportunities over the course of the game.

"Ballymena went close on occasions and we rode our luck at times. The free-kick that hits the post is a great delivery from Ben Kennedy. I felt at that stage it could be one of those days when we get a real ugly 1-0 win. It always felt like it was going to be a 1-0 victory either way.

"Thankfully today that proved to be the case."

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Glentoran manager Declan Devine said he was delighted to see Jordan Jenkins and Wassim Aouachira find the net in the side's 3-1 victory over Crusaders at Seaview.

Coming into the game, the east Belfast side were the lowest scorers in the Irish Premiership's top eight with forwards at the Oval coming in for criticism in recent weeks.

But, after coming off the bench in the second half, Jenkins cancelled out Jordan Forsythe's 24th minute header with his first league goal since August before summer signing and fellow substitute Wassim opened his account for the Glens to round off the comeback.

"I'm delighted for them because they've waited for their chance and JJ [Jenkins] has got a few important goals for us this year," said Devine.

"I don't think it's very fair that the front players have come in for a bit of abuse because it's all over the pitch, it's a team game and we saw that tonight.

"We're creating a lot of opportunities but we've missed chances from set-pieces too with defenders up in the box. All in all, if anyone is getting abuse, we all take it as a group."

Glentoran have now lost just once in their past seven games in all competitions and won in north Belfast despite the absence of players like Jay Donnelly, Frankie Hvid and James Singleton.

"There was probably a different team picked yesterday for the game but the lads were ready and that's really pleasing," added Devine.

"We came into the game missing a lot of bodies, five or six players who would normally be starting in the team.

"We preach a lot about the depth of our squad and that when players get an opportunity, that they take their opportunity. That was the most pleasing factor."

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Cliftonville manager Jim Magilton says he expects improvement from his side in the second half of the Irish Premiership season despite the Reds lying second in the standings, seven points behind leaders Linfield.

The Reds are on a run of just one defeat from their past eight top flight outings ahead of a testing trip to Shamrock Park to take on Portadown on Saturday.

"I know we are capable of more. If I thought we were at the height of our powers then I'd worry," said Magilton.

"I think there's more to come from all the players and obviously we'll be looking to strengthen in January to make us better."

The Irish Cup winners lost a wealth of striking talent in the form of Ronan Hale, Sam Ashford and Ben Wilson during the summer but the prolific Joe Gormley sits atop the league scoring charts with 14 goals so far in the 2024-25 Premiership campaign.

"A lot outside of the four walls of our changing room was made of it [losing the forward trio] and quite rightly in terms of the quality of the lads that had performed so well for us.

"But I always had great faith in the players that we retained.

"I knew that once we found some consistency in our play we could create scoring opportunities and given the scoring prowess that we still retain at the club I knew that they would score goals, and notably Joe. He's had a fantastic first half of the season."

The north Belfast club has also been frugal in defence, conceding 17 goals in their 18 league matches to date.

Magilton added: "The foundation of any good team is not conceding goals and building on that, reducing the opposition to as few opportunities as possible.

"We had a lot of changes [in the summer] and it took players a little bit longer than we anticipated to settle into the club and into the league.

"Once we got that consistency we had a little spell where we played extremely well in one or two games, where I thought we had total control and saw the games out in a really controlled manner. That gave us great confidence."

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John Herron has left Ballymena United after a short spell with the Irish Premiership club.

News of the 30-year-old's midfielder's departure from the Showgrounds was confirmed by the club on Friday.

"After a short spell with Ballymena United we bid farewell to John Herron. We thank John for his time with us and he will always be welcomed back at the Showgrounds," read a short statement from the Sky Blues.

The Braidmen signed Herron in July on a one-year contract but the ex-Glentoran and Larne player was unable to play until well into the campaign as he served a 10-match suspension handed out to him by the Irish Football Association [IFA] for bringing the game into disrepute.

The Scottish player received the ban after images of him at a concert wearing a T-shirt with a pro-IRA slogan appeared on social media while he was with Larne.

Richard Petrie
BBC Sport NI Journalist

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Dungannon Swifts manager Rodney McAree says his side will need to be even better in the second half of the Irish Premiership season if they are to have any chance of holding onto the top-six position they currently occupy in the league.

The Stangmore Park club, who travel to Ballymena on Saturday, sit in a lofty fourth spot in the table after their first 19 matches of the campaign thanks to nine wins and three draws.

The league splits into a top six and bottom six for the final five series of games after all clubs have fulfilled 33 fixtures.

"It's going to be a huge ask even from the position we are sitting in," said McAree of retaining a place in the upper half of the table.

"We understand how hard we've had to work and what we've had to put into all those games to try and get results out of them so we know we'll probably have to work even harder now in the second half of the season as if clubs have underestimated us they're certainly not going to underestimate us from now on.

"So we're going to have to do better again, keep improving, keep getting better, play better and compete better if we're going to continue it on."

The Swifts boss has commended his players for maintaining their form through the first four months of the term.

"You thought after a few matches you were sitting in a good position, you wonder can you keep it going, and again after 10 games, and we've probably kept it going now for 19 games which is huge credit to the players.

"The one thing I asked them to do at the start of the season was to compete in every game and that was probably my sole focus when I came back to the club."