Saturday 9th April
3.00pm Kick Off
On Saturday we commence our post-split series of matches against fourth placed Crusaders, who visit the Bet McLean Oval for the first time since December.
Having managed to pick up two league wins against Crusaders at Seaview this season, Glentoran will now be hoping to avenge the humbling 0-3 defeat at the hands of the Crues last time the sides met at the Oval back in September. That day an early Adam Leckey goal from close range gave Stephen Baxter’s side the lead, and a disastrous 20-minute spell after the break put the Crues in total control. midfielder Ben Kennedy converting from the penalty spot and defender Aidan Wilson headed home from a corner to end the contest after just 65 minutes.
While Crusaders pursuit of the league title has long since ended, they have enjoyed a run of solid form over the last two months to sit comfortably in fourth place and also reached the Irish Cup Final, where they will be hoping to win for a fifth time in their history. The Shore Road side have won four of their last five league games and won seven of the eleven games played since our win at Seaview on January 21st.
Defender Josh Robinson has missed the last four games, along with midfielder Jude Winchester, while central defender Daniel Larmour had to be substituted during the Semi Final win over Cliftonville and was replaced by ex-Rangers and Dungannon man Chris Hegarty. In the forward area, it is Adam Leckey who is currently in favour to lead the line, with veteran Jordan Owens and Johnny McMurray having to settle for places on the substitutes bench.
Mick McDermott: “I was very pleased with the hunger the players showed in our last Danske Bank Premiership game at home to Carrick, and with the way they went about getting a good victory. I always say that you can’t go out and chase a goal from the first minute. You need to settle in, play well, control the game and then the chances will come. We dominated possession throughout the game, played some quality football and came out deservedly comfortable winners.
I was very pleased to see Dillon Powers do so well in his first start for us. Dillon can be a very important player for us in the remaining games. He’s very experienced and he was very effective for us in that deeper lying role. Also I was very pleased to see Shay McCartan get his first two goals at the Oval and Jordan Jenkins get his first goal for the first team after scoring for fun for the Seconds all season.
We all know the importance of Saturday’s Crusaders fixture and the remaining games. We need to take care of this game and, of course, go for maximum points in the rest of our post-split matches.
We are coming off a positive performance against Carrick and Crusaders are coming off a great result and win over Cliftonville in the Irish Cup semi-final, so it is set to be a very competitive game between two good teams. Crusaders have a very strong squad and they showed us how capable they when they came here at the start of the season. But since then we’ve had two good wins at Seaview in highly competitive games, so we’ll go into this one with the right levels of confidence and determination.
We have a full squad to choose from apart from the long-term absentees, which is great at this point of the season.”
As always at home matches, we strongly request that supporters respect the rights of the local residents by parking well away from housefronts in the immediate locality. There is plenty of available parking at the Holywood Arches Heath Centre.
Saturday's match will be streamed live by GlensTV with Performa Sports for those unable to make it to the Bet McLean Oval.
The stream will cost £10 and will be available online at the following site from our own bespoke club page HERE
The game will be filmed by David Kerr of GlensTV. Commentator for the match will be Aaron Agnew, alongside our all-time record appearance maker Colin Nixon.
Saturday’s match sponsor is the One Stop Mortgage Shop Bangor.
With branches in Bangor and Belfast, the One Stop Mortgage Shop provides mortgage advice ensuring that clients receive the mortgage product best suited to their needs and budget. Also professional advice in Life Assurance and Home Insurance.
One Stop Mortgage Shop can be visited or contacted at:
Bloomfield Shopping Centre
South Circular Rd
Bangor BT19 7HB
Tel: 028 91 46 5265 email: bangor@onestopmortgageshop.co.uk
Also at:
4 Wellington Place
Belfast BT1 6GE
Tel: 028 9031 2222 email: belfast@onestopmortgageshop.co.uk
Saturday’s ball sponsor is Chris Bradley Personal Training
We are a private gym located on the Station Road Industrial Estate in Magherafelt. We specialise in helping busy people lose weight, gain muscle & pick up their confidence in under 12 weeks. We have a wide range of programs available for anyone beginning their health & fitness journey to those individuals who want to completely transform the way they look, feel & most importantly how they live their lives.
- Magherafelt's Number 1 Personal Training Facility.
- Expert Body Transformation Coaches.
- We Help You Drop The Weight So You Can Pick Up Your Confidence.
Website: https://chrisbradleypersonaltraining.com/
email: chrisbradley@chrisbradleypersonaltraining.co.uk
