Feeney targets response against Reds
LEE Feeney will be looking to put the recent disappointment of losing to Carrick Rangers behind him as he prepares his side to face Cliftonville at Solitude this Tuesday night (7.45pm).
The Bangor boss felt that his side weren’t at their usual standards in midweek and missed a good opportunity to get points on the board.
Instead it was an in-form Carrick Rangers side who continued their recent resurgence as they moved up to sixth place in the standings, a point ahead of the Seasiders.
But with the next four fixtures against teams currently in the bottom half of the table, Feeney is confident that his side will respond in the right manner.
“There will be no difficulties in lifting the mood in the dressing room after Tuesday night’s defeat,” said the Bangor manager.
“Everyone was disappointed at full time. The players are disappointed in themselves that they didn’t perform the way they can.
“We didn’t defend the way we usually do, we weren’t at our usual standards and I don’t think we had the same energy that we usually have.
“It feels like an opportunity missed to get something out of the game, but the players know that themselves and they will fix that. They won’t let that happen again.”
Since conceding seven goals against Glentoran at the start of January, Carrick Rangers have bounced back in style, picking up 13 points and lifting the County Antrim Shield in the process.
Stephen Baxter’s men have found goal scoring easy in recent weeks having put three goals past Portadown, four past Cliftonville and five past Dungannon Swifts in a remarkable run of form.
Despite those exploits, Feeney was disappointed that his side made things easy for their opponents on Tuesday.
“We didn’t defend well against a team who have been scoring loads of goals recently,” he reflected.
“The frustrating thing is that Carrick Rangers didn’t have to work too hard to get their goals. I thought the three goals they scored were all very easy and very preventable from our side. That defending wasn’t like us at all.
“One of the biggest differences between the two teams was their experience against our inexperience. Carrick managed the game really well. Even when we were ahead in the game they kept us within touching distance and didn’t gift us any opportunities.
“Instead they hung in and waited for their own opportunities which we presented to them.
“We could have been two goals up when Jay Boyd hit the post but instead three minutes later the scores are level and ten minutes later we’re behind.”
As focus shifts to preparations for the fixture with Cliftonville on Tuesday night, Feeney will be hoping for positive news on the injury front with Mark Haughey nearing a return while Lewis Francis limped off with a hamstring injury against Carrick Rangers, joining Oisin Devlin, Caomhan McGuinness and Jack O’Mahony on the injury list.
Despite the Reds having won only once in the league since November, Feeney knows his side will face a stern test at Solitude.
“We know that Cliftonville will be a really tough game,” warned Feeney.
“Cliftonville are an experienced side who have won trophies and have the know-how to win big matches.
“They have a top manager and assistant manager in Jim Magilton and Gerard Lyttle, and they will have their team well prepared for us going to Solitude.
“We’re going to have to be on top of our game to get a result on Tuesday night.”
