Glentoran’s manager, Declan Devine, expressed that the Irish Premiership title race still has many “twists and turns” left after his team fell six points behind Larne at the top of the table, following a 1-1 draw with Linfield at the Oval on Saturday.
Matt Yates opened the scoring for Linfield in the first half, but Aaron McEneff equalized from the penalty spot in the second half.
With four rounds of fixtures remaining, Glentoran’s aspirations for their first league title since 2009 seem to be dwindling, yet Devine remains optimistic about their chances of claiming the championship despite the disappointing result of two consecutive home draws.
“It’s frustrating, but there are still many points to fight for and plenty of twists and turns ahead. We know we can perform better, and we hope to prove that in the remaining matches,” said Devine after the match.
“I felt we didn’t play at our best; our performance standards were lacking, especially in the first half.”
“We were disappointed with our level of play. Today, we weren’t as coherent as we have been, and we simply didn’t do enough to secure the win.”
“I was particularly let down by the goal we conceded, and we missed a couple of chances we should have converted.”
Linfield’s manager, David Healy, told BBC Sport NI that he thought a draw was “probably a fair result.”
Larne’s 2-0 triumph over Cliftonville means Linfield can no longer defend their title, but the south Belfast team is still vying for the second spot, which would secure European qualification without the need for a playoff, having already qualified for the playoff final due to their victory in the BetMcLean Cup.
“We’re currently fourth in the league, and I’ve stressed to the players the importance of finishing as high as possible. This will be our focus for the next four games,” Healy remarked.
“Qualification for European football is crucial for the club’s finances, so we’ll aim to maximize our chances and continue pushing forward.”
Larne ‘Maintains Momentum’
On the other hand, Larne’s manager, Gary Haveron, was pleased with the win that bolstered his team’s lead at the top, even though he admitted that his team was “nowhere near their best.”
“We were uncharacteristically sloppy and made a few individual errors but managed to play some good football at times,” he noted.
“At 1-0, we were seeking some extra security, but our defensive performance has been outstanding all season, and it’s great to achieve another clean sheet at home.”
“I believed it would be challenging for them to break us down, and I’m thrilled to secure the two goals and three points.”
“Our aim was to maintain the momentum. We could have postponed this match due to international call-ups, but I felt it was important to continue playing. I was confident we had enough strength in the squad to secure the result, and in hindsight, I’m glad to have gotten this match out of the way and to have earned the three points.”