Matchday Guide: Glentoran

COLERAINE are at home for the third successive game as Glentoran make their way to the Ballycastle Road this afternoon (KO 3pm)…

Sports Direct Premiership

Overview:

Coleraine would start their post-split schedule with a 2-2 draw against Cliftonville at The Showgrounds. Oran Kearney’s men would find themselves two goals down at the break but snatched a point as Matthew Shevlin and an own goal from David Odumosu meant honours even. The Bannsiders will once again be without the suspended Conor McKendry and Stephen Lowry for today’s contest.

Glentoran played out a goalless draw against Linfield at The Oval last weekend in a game played in difficult conditions due to Storm Kathleen. The visitors are currently 5th in the table after being leapfrogged by Crusaders but know a positive result this afternoon will see them overtake Stephen Baxter’s side.

Previous Meetings:

In September, Oran Kearney’s men would come from behind to win at The Oval as two late goals saw the Bannsiders leave with all three points. Despite making a bright start to proceedings, Coleraine would find themselves behind on 24 minutes as James Singleton was in the right place at the right time to fire in from Shay McCartan’s free-kick. After several opportunities were wasted by the visitors, Coleraine responded on 79 minutes as Lee Harkin’s cross was headed into the net by Matthew Shevlin. The dramatic turnaround would then be completed two minutes later as Conor McKendry evaded several challenges before arrowing a strike into the bottom corner.

In November, the Stripes would host Glentoran as the Sky Sports cameras rolled into town. Glentoran would make a bright start and threatened after just three minutes as Jonathan Russell’s cross was blasted inches wide by Jay Donnelly. After Josh Carson fired over at the other end, the Glens would have further opportunities as Junior and Russell both headed wide from inviting positions. In the second-half, Jay Donnelly would have another attempt palmed away as Coleraine threatened twice late on as Matthew Shevlin had two sights of goal.

Coleraine would have an afternoon to forget as they were the visitors to Glentoran in early January. With barely one minute on the clock the Glens took the lead through David Fisher after miscommunication at the back from the Bannsiders led to the striker getting through on goal for an easy tap-in. At the end of the first half, the Glens doubled their lead through Fisher who also doubled his goal tally after a long ball broke the Coleraine defensive line. This allowed the ball to be controlled by the Englishman and he slotted the ball beyond Brown into the net. Three minutes into the second half, Glentoran were awarded a penalty after a tangle in the box resulted in Junior going down inside the box. This allowed Fisher to complete his hat-trick as he calmly dispatched from 12 yards. With 52 minutes played, Junior pounced on a loose ball that was meant for Brown and rounded the ‘keeper to tap the ball home for 4-0. Two minutes later, Junior saw his long range shot cannon off the upright which meant he had a second bite at the cherry to place the ball into the bottom corner for Glentoran’s fifth. The hosts were becoming rampant and the ball broke to Bobby Burns at the edge of the box whose long-range daisycutter went into the bottom corner for 6-0.

Manager’s Thoughts:

“We’re not so concerned with six games unbeaten,” said Kearney.

“The key thing is performance levels. Last week in the first-half, it wasn’t at the level we needed it to be but the second-half was a huge amount better.

“For us, over the past weeks, we’ve been up to 90 minutes where performances have been good.

“We’ve got to get back to that next week and make sure we hit the full 90 minutes.”

Officials:

The match referee will be Steven Gregg.

The assistant referees are Adam Jeffrey and David Burns.

Glenn Buchanan has been selected as the fourth official.

Sponsors:

The match sponsor is Farren Consulting.

The Clyde Tavern has also kindly agreed to sponsor the match ball.

The mascots this afternoon are Archie, Lillie, Max and Amelia.

The Man of the Match award will be sponsored by Holley Optometrists.

Admission:

Season tickets are valid for the fixture, although, non-season ticket holders will require matchday tickets for the fixture which can be bought online HERE.

Glentoran fans will need tickets to enter the stadium which can be purchased HERE.

The Social Club will be open from 11:30am – with football on the big screens, post-match entertainment and drink promotions.

Stewart Clanachan and Paul Gaston will be returning to The Showgrounds as Special Guests this afternoon HERE.

Due to a good expected at The Showgrounds, we encourage both sets of supporters to arrive at the ground in good time HERE.

As ever, those unable to watch the fixture can follow the latest developments via the club’s official Twitter account