COLERAINE start their March fixtures by welcoming Portadown to The Showgrounds in Premiership action this afternoon (KO 3pm)…

SPORTS DIRECT PREMIERSHIP

Overview:

Coleraine picked up all three points from last weekend’s trip to Linfield as Connor Murray netted in both halves as the Bannsiders ran out 2-0 victors. Dean Shiels’ men remained in 8th spot in the Premiership standings despite that success in the capital. The Stripes will once again be without defender Dean Jarvis as he completes the second match of his two-match ban.

Portadown lost out to Ballymena United last weekend as goals from James Hood and Joe Moore sealed a 2-0 win for the Sky Blues. Niall Currie’s men find themselves 7th in the Premiership table as goal difference just rules them out of the top-six at present. The Ports had a busy January transfer window as
Divin Isamala (Bohemians – loan), Rabby Tabu Minzamba (Montpelier), James Teelan (Crusaders) and Jordan Williamson (Lower Shankill) all joined.

Previous Meetings:

In September, Coleraine would leave Shamrock Park with a share of the spoils after the hosts came from two goals down to salvage a 2-2 draw. The Stripes made the breakthrough with less than 10 minutes on the clock as Rhyss Campbell showed perseverance to slam the ball into the back of the net from close range. Before the break, Rory Brown made a stunning save to deny Baris Alintop who looked like netting from a header. On 70 minutes, Coleraine went 2-0 ahead as Matthew Shevlin converted from the spot after Cameron Stewart was fouled inside the box. However, Portadown mounted a spirited comeback as Mayse scored from close range, before Dougie Wilson fired in a stoppage time equaliser.

Head Coach’s Thoughts:

“Portadown are having a really good season and have really good players,” Shiels said.

“They have invested well into their squad so it’s going to be very difficult.

“They’ve drawn recently at Cliftonville and beat Larne, so they are in good form and we are going to have to be at our best.

“We are going to have to equal the standards we reached last week and that’s key with consistency with performance levels.

“We are very confident going into it and the belief from which we got last week should progress into Saturday.

Officials:

The match referee will be Shane Andrews.

The assistant referees are Brian Wilson and Gavin Hegarty.

Niall Devlin has been selected as the fourth official.

Sponsors:

The match sponsor is Colin McBride Residential.

Sing with Olivia has kindly agreed to sponsor the match ball.

The mascots this afternoon are Leo and Freddie.

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 HERE.

Portadown fans will need tickets to enter the stadium which can be purchased 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 (@ColeraineFC).