Bannsiders on Red alert

ORAN Kearney hopes Matthew Shevlin’s misfortune can be someone else’s joy ahead of the 17th meeting between Coleraine and Cliftonville since the start of the 2021/22 season tomorrow afternoon…

Shevlin was dismissed in the first-half of last weekend’s defeat to Ballymena United for a challenge on home stopper Sean O’Neill.

That red card means the Bannsiders’ top goalscorer must sit out for the visit of the Reds, with Kearney set to give a chance for someone else to stake their claim.

“It’s frustrating as the damage of the red card wasn’t just against Ballymena United but for however long the suspension is,” he said.

“It depends what it’s classified as, as it could be anywhere from two to three games.

“It’s ultra-frustrating because we felt the Ballymena game was one where we could go and get our three points.

“Not only that but losing Matthew over the next few weeks will hurt also.”

Cliftonville currently sit 3rd in the Premiership standings and have impressed since Jim Magilton took the reins at Solitude.

“They’ve been flying,” Kearney added.

“We had a tough game up there a month ago which was well documented.

“To be fair, our first-half performance up there was probably bang on the money and we didn’t deserve to go in 1-0 down.

“But our second-half performance wasn’t and there’s no hiding from that.

“We’ve got to make sure we hit a 90, 95 minute performance this weekend.”