Glentoran will be looking to put Tuesday’s bitter defeat behind them with a big performance against Glenavon tomorrow.
The Glens were crestfallen after their unbeaten run stretching back to five matches came to a grinding halt following a 4-0 horror show against rivals Linfield at the Oval.
After the game, boss Alan Kernaghan admitted his team were “embarrassed”, and he will be determined to dilute the setback with a convincing showing against the Lurgan Blues.
Gary Hamilton’s men are grappling with Cliftonville for a third place finish in the league, and leapfrogged the North Belfast outfit after a 3-0 win against Coleraine on Tuesday night.
The Lurgan side will be going into the clash with hopes of cementing their position with two games remaining in the Danske Bank Premiership. Meanwhile, the Glens are still in contention to seal a fifth place finish despite trailing Oran Kearney’s Coleraine by three points. The league position will be the difference in securing a home advantage in the European play-offs.
Tomorrow’s fixture will mark a fifth encounter between the teams. The East Belfast side are unbeaten in the three previous league meetings, but were knocked out of the Irish Cup in disappointing fashion at the hands on Glenavon who claimed a 4-1 victory at the Oval back in February.
However, Kernaghan and his team responded well and avenged their failure to retain the Irish Cup just nine days later by beating the same opponents 3-1 in an entertaining encounter at Mournview Park.
Ahead of the showdown tomorrow, Curtis Allen is set to make his 100th appearance for the club. The striker has been in fine form all season, netting on 21 occasions, taking his tally to an impressive 47 in the Glens shirt.
Nathan Webb