Ross Clarke admits it will be a strange feeling lining out against former club Crusaders for the first time in Saturday’s Sports Direct Premiership clash at the BetMcLean Oval (Kick-off: 3pm), but his focus is on picking up another three points for Glentoran.

Clarke spent almost eight years at Seaview before moving across Belfast during the January transfer window to join the Glens.

Now he is preparing to take on his former employers, and while it will be an unusual experience for Clarke, he only has one thing on his mind.

Ross Clarke said: “It’s always a strange experience when you come up against your former club for the first time.

“I joined them back in 2018, so Crusaders have been a big part of my playing career. I have lots of happy memories from my time there.

“I also have a lot of good friends at the club and it will be good to catch up with them again, but we have a job to do first and that’s picking up three points.

“We produced a really good performance against Cliftonville on Tuesday night, particularly in the second half, and it’s important we hit those levels again.

“If we do then it gives us a really good chance of going on and picking up another win, that is certainly the aim.”

Clarke has settled into life at the BetMcLean Oval with relative ease following his cross-city switch.

Having a number of familiar faces in the Glentoran squad has helped the 32-year-old make a smooth transition and Clarke has backed that up with several impressive performances for his new club.

Clarke said: “It can always take a bit of time to settle when you move to a new club, but since I came in the door here the boys have been brilliant in making me welcome.

“Having the likes of Daniel Larmour and Jordan Stewart here, who I played with at Crusaders, obviously helps but the other lads have been brilliant too.

“I’ve really enjoyed the start to my Glentoran career. From the moment I came in, I felt settled and clear in my role, and my focus now is on maintaining those standards, delivering consistently for the team, and helping drive us forward.

“There’s definitely more to come from me and I’m determined to keep building and improving every week.”

As well as feeling right at home Clarke has also been impressed by the professionalism around the club.

The chance to move to full-time football was also a big factor in his decision to move to east Belfast.

Clarke said: “As a player having the chance to play full-time is one which is very hard to turn down.

“When I spoke to Declan about the move it was very easy to see his vision for the club and buy into it.

“Since I joined, I’ve been so impressed with the professionalism throughout the club. The set-up here is fantastic.

“As players we have everything we could want which helps so much in our preparation for games.

“That’s a big bonus about being full-time as you have time to prepare for games on and off the pitch.

“That was another big factor for me as being able to put all your focus on football can only help your game and I have certainly felt the benefit of it already.”

Clarke’s arrival has added to an already impressive array of attacking talent at Declan Devine’s disposal.

Tuesday night’s 4-0 win over Cliftonville helped showcase some of that talent with home goalkeeper Lewis Ridd the busiest man on the pitch.

Clarke added: “It was a good performance from the whole team and I think it showed just how much of a threat we can be.

“We created so many opportunities on the night and if it hadn’t been for their keeper we would have added a few more goals to the total.

“It was obviously important for us to get back to winning ways again after losing at Linfield, and I think you could see the determination in our play that we were going to do everything we could to get the win.

“We were the better side in the first half, but we couldn’t find the goal unfortunately. The most important thing was we stayed patient and didn’t get frustrated.

“There was probably a bit of outside pressure on us because of the result on Saturday night, but as a group we just have to block that out and focus on what we have to do.

“As a group, we know that if we continue to work hard and produce performances like we did on Tuesday night it will stand us in good stead for the last couple of months of the season.”

The midweek results saw Glentoran close the gap on the teams above them, and while Clarke is expecting a few more twists and turns, he insists their focus is clear.

Clarke concluded: “It was a good night for us and the other results fell in our favour, but they only mattered because we took care of our own job first.

“Our focus has to remain on maintaining our standards and delivering consistent performances. There is no value in looking elsewhere because what other teams do is beyond our control. What will define our season is how we perform in these remaining games.

“If we continue to collect points, we will put ourselves in the strongest possible position going into the split.”

For Glentoran fans planning to attend Saturday’s Sports Direct Premiership fixture against Crusaders, match tickets are available to purchase at: https://www.glentoran.com/tickets/home-tickets/