City Bound

COLERAINE will face Newry City in league action for the first time since 2011 as the Bannsiders make the trip to The Showgrounds (KO 3pm)…

The Stripes will be aiming to secure a valuable three points after a trio of successive draws against Ards, Linfield and Ballymena United. Those draws mean Coleraine currently trail league leaders Glenavon by five points at this early stage. As for Newry, they have made a steady start upon their return to the top flight having amassed 7 points from their opening eight games. The two sides last met each other in league duties in 2011 as goals from Johnny Harkness and Leon Knight secured a 2-0 success at the Newry Showgrounds.

Coleraine manager Rodney McAree will be without the services of Lyndon Kane through injury and Eoin Bradley through suspension. In a further blow, full-back Aaron Traynor is expected to be on the sidelines with a hamstring injury. However the Bannsiders are hopeful that defender Gareth McConaghie will be available for selection but less confident about Josh Carson’s potential return.

“We have to go into Saturday’s game at Newry very focused and positive and raring to go,” he said.

“I went to watch them last Friday against Warrenpoint and they are a decent side.

“What you get with Newry is that they have a great togetherness, very much like what we have in our own dressing room.

“We just have to show our quality on the day.

“We will possibly have Gareth McConaghie available again, but I’m not sure about Josh Carson.

“We have to be careful how we manage Josh, we are not 100% sure what it is exactly, we know it’s something affecting his hamstring, but we’re not sure what is triggering the pain.

“He will have to get it looked at so we can see how best to deal with it.”

As ever, those unable to attend can follow the latest developments via the club’s official Twitter account (@ColeraineFC).