Tuning Up

COLERAINE boss Oran Kearney hopes to fine tune his players over the next few weeks as they finalise their pre-split fixtures against Glenavon tomorrow afternoon (KO 3pm)…

Danske Bank Premiership

Overview:

The Bannsiders secured their top six position on Tuesday night as they ran out 5-2 winners against Warrenpoint Town at Milltown. The visitors would hit four goals in the first-half through Curtis Allen (2), Stephen O’Donnell and Kirk McLaughlin, with Andrew Mitchell netting his first goal for the club after the break. That result means Oran Kearney’s men remain sixth in the Premiership standings and he will have Lyndon Kane and Adam Mullan back available from suspension.

Glenavon come into the fixture after last weekend’s defeat to Cliftonville as Joe Gormley and Paul O’Neill got on the scoresheet for the Reds. Gary Hamilton’s troops are 7th in the Premiership standings and will fight with Ballymena United for that European play-off position. The Lurgan Blues are unbeaten in their last four matches away from Mourneview Park after draws against Larne and Ballymena United, as well as a win and a draw against Crusaders.

Previous meetings:

The two teams met in October in what would prove to be a fourth successive draw between the sides. The Bannsiders would hit the crossbar through Conor McKendry in the first-half, with Kyle Beggs and Michael O’Connor also rattling the woodwork. Oran Kearney’s men would have the perfect chance to take the lead as Stephen Lowry had a penalty saved before Cathair Friel’s strike was cleared off the line by Mark Stafford. The Stripes would have further opportunities to find that elusive goal but their efforts would prove to be vain as both teams had to settle for a point at The Showgrounds.

Just before Christmas, Coleraine would make the journey to Mourneview Park and they would create plenty of chances in the opening 45 minutes but neither Rodney Brown or Matthew Shevlin could convert from a good position, with Matthew Snoddy and Peter Campbell going close at the other end. The second-half would be a more cagey affair with Coleraine striker Eoin Bradley being brought down when through on goal but Danny Wallace received a caution rather than being dismissed. With less than ten minutes to go, the Stripes would be hit with a sucker punch as Matthew Snoddy struck into the bottom corner.

Manager’s Thoughts:

“I think it’s been four or five games away from home on the bounce,” he said.

“We’ve been on our travels quite a bit so it’ll be nice to get back at The Showgrounds on Saturday.

“Hopefully we can get another crowd out and a good performance.

“The key thing as we’ve already said is about those play-offs at the end of the year.

“We’ve a lot of guys who’ve played a lot of football this year and need a short break, whilst there are some guys who need some football as well.

“We’ve got to use these next few weeks wisely to try and look after everybody so we are going into those games as fresh as possible.”

Officials:

The match referee will be Tim Marshall.

The assistant referees are Andrew Nethery and Kristian Hanna.

Diarmuid Harrigan has been allocated as the fourth official.

Sponsors:

The match sponsor is JF Travel.

The Belfry Deli have kindly agreed to sponsor the match ball.

The mascots tomorrow afternoon are Connor, Ethan, Leon, Finn, Max, Luke, Harry and Jay and they will have the honour of leading out the team.

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.

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

Both sets of supporters are kindly asked to read the following matchday arrangements HERE.

If you are not feeling yourself tomorrow afternoon and you have symptoms which you feel are similar to COVID-19, please stay away from the stadium and think of others.

If you have access to a lateral flow/PCR test at home, we would encourage you to check yourself before coming to the game.

If you have been in contact with a positive case and haven’t yet been contacted by track and trace, please do not come to the game.

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