Glentoran host Cliftonville in tonight’s Danske Bank Premiership tie following defeats for both sides on Saturday.
The Glens were unable to make it three league wins in a row for the first time this season with one goal at Ferney Park being enough to seal three points for Whitey Anderson’s Ballinamallard United.
Alan Kernaghan’s men were reduced to 10 after goalkeeper Arron Hogg was given his marching orders for bringing down Stephen O’Flynn in the area. Elliott Morris, who failed a late fitness test was forced to come on, and heroically saved Jason McCartney’s penalty.
Matters got even worse for the East Belfast side after a scuffle between the teams resulted in a red card for both Steven Gordon and home player Johnny Lafferty.
The Mallards controlled much of the game and were able to make their numerical advantage count as Adam Lecky found the net on the hour-mark, which proved to be the winner.
Meanwhile, Gerrard Lyttle suffered a 1-3 home loss to Coleraine last weekend which he described as one of the worst performances he’s witnessed in charge of the Reds. The defeat cost the North Belfast club a league position as they slipped to fourth place, with Glenavon moving into the top three on goal difference.
The Glens have a strong home record against tonight’s visitors, having won the last three league meetings at The Oval. The last time the Reds won in East Belfast was back in 2011, when Ryan Catney scored a dramatic last-gasp winner to steal three points against a 10-man Glentoran team.
The most recent clash in this fixture fell on December 19, the Glens claimed a 2-0 home victory with goals from Jonathon Smith and Fra McCaffrey. Following this game, both clubs failed to secure a win in their next four league games. The Glens fell to successive defeats, while Lyttle’s men recorded consecutive draws.
Ahead of the game, Kernaghan will be without Gordon and Hogg following their dismissal on Saturday. Chris Lavery remains a doubt through injury, while new signing Stephen Rice could make his debut after missing out on Saturday’s loss because his international clearance did not come through on time.
Supporters should allow extra time to get to the game tonight due to the concert in the Odyssey.
Nathan Webb