Due to an error on my behalf (pure stupidity) this “Match report” is extremely late. Therefore I’m going to make it more of a review of the match, rather than a report on what happened.
My last match report was after a fantastic performance away to Glenavon. Our next match was away to Crusaders, however I was unable to do a report for this game due to other commitments meaning I was unable to take notes at the match. Although the score line for this game may have read Crusaders 1-1 Glentoran, this was a game which we could have and possibly should have won, as we were the better side. It was a new pitch at Seaview and unluckily for James Taylor, the ball took a bounce as he went down to collect it, meaning instead of going straight into his arms it went into the net.
Now here we are again, a fortnight later due to our match with Dungannon getting called off, home to Glenavon. We’ve had a good rest, plenty of time to get our heads sorted since our last league game at home and the Glentoran faithful were hoping for a good performance. In my opinion, in fact scrap that, we did put in a great performance. I was unable to fault a single player on that pitch on Saturday, which is exactly what I want to see this weekend when we come up against our friends from across the city.
There were a few players in particular I was delighted for. The first of these is Kyle Neill. Kyle has come under an awful lot of stick this season. No matter what anyone says, he has a great amount of talent. When Kyle Neill plays well, he is outstanding and it was that side of him he showed on Saturday. I attended the Michael Halliday darts evening last Saturday at The Park Avenue. I was able to have a good chat with Kyle (he came over to our table to talk to us, which shows his personality).
We got talking about the club and he said that he has never been at a club like Glentoran. His exact words were “Aw you don’t know how good this club is. Unbelievable.” This was very pleasing to hear. So when I seen him get on the end of that Gary Hamilton corner for his first goal I was delighted. I heard someone say that he couldn’t have missed it. Well I disagree. He headed it from a difficult angle but was able to place it with pure power in a perfect spot. I then seen Gary Hamilton’s celebration and drew up the conclusion that Kyle’s wife gave birth to baby sometime in the last week. Turns out it was the day previous. Not a bad start to the weekend for Kyle Neill.
The next player who deserves a lot of credit for their performance on Saturday is Elliot Morris. Elliot has not had a great start to the season, but we all know that he is the best keeper in the league when on form and a genuinely nice guy too. I think Elliot cares a lot for this club even though he grew up a Crues fan. Elliot pulled off a string of great saves throughout the game. His fantastic judgement in the 18th minute meant he was able to deny Trevor Molloy the chance to bring Glenavon on equal terms. There was one stage in the match where Elliot pulled off a wonderful save from a Tony Grant shot to tip the ball over the bar. A great performance by Elliot Morris.
Richard Clarke was my man of the match, run close by Daryl Fordyce. I feel that Glentoran fans have been somewhat harsh on Clarke since he joined the club. Richard came to the club with a great reputation and I believe that at crucial times he has lived up to it. He is at a new club and we are only half way through the season, I still think there is a lot to come from Richard. However on Saturday his passing and movement was second to none. He showed great quality alongside Deano, who he has a good partnership with. He isn’t afraid to get forward, but he will track back too, something which is hard to find in a midfielder these days. He took full advantage of the space he was given by a poor Glenavon midfield, so fair play. Daryl Fordyce is like a breath of fresh air up front. He is another player who has received a lot of stick over the past year or so, but it was clear to all that he was not a right winger. He has linked up very well with Hamilton since moving up top and the standing ovation he got when coming off told the story.
There was great team work involved for Neill’s second goal of the game. Colin Nixon, Keith Gillespie, Dean Fitzgerald and Daryl Fordyce were all involved in the goal. Gillespie delivered a fine cross for Fordyce, whose shot was well saved by Murphy, but Neill was making no mistakes when he sent the ball home, putting the Glens out of sight.
Once again the Blues dropped points, this time away to Dungannon, meaning there is a mere 3 points in the title race. Its neck in neck stuff once again this season, looking like it’s going to go all the way. I am confident that we have the passion and belief to go on and retain the title. At the minute my attention is turned away from the manager. I am an honest enough man to say I was critical at first to see that he was sitting in the stand this week, however if that was purely a footballing decision then fair enough. I think the management team has shown a lot of bottle over the past few weeks. Since the defeat to Coleraine we have played some good stuff, so long may that continue.
A break from the league this weekend as we take on Linfield at The Oval. Hopefully we can help in Linfield’s boycott quest this season, by playing our part in their boycott of trophies.
Le Jeu Avant Tout.