Cliftonville teenage sensation 'showed what he’s all about' after continuing to impress with Irish League assist

Madden has already had trials at the likes of Premier League giants Arsenal and Manchester United and continues to impress at senior level, now racking up eight league appearances for Magilton’s men after playing the final half-hour on Saturday.

Having only turned 16 in February, Madden registered an assist on Premiership debut against Loughgall earlier this season and also scored his first senior goal in a BetMcLean Cup quarter-final triumph at Armagh City.

Madden shone once again in North Belfast this weekend, setting up Eric McWoods to seal Cliftonville’s fourth consecutive league win after Ryan Curran had put the hosts ahead.

Holding a five-point advantage over Portadown in the race for seventh, Magilton will be trying to manage his squad’s minutes over the final two league matches prior to their Irish Cup final showdown with Dungannon Swifts.

Top scorer Joe Gormley was an unused substitute on Saturday afternoon while Jonny Addis and talisman Rory Hale both started on the bench.

“Players are going to play with niggles and slight strains here and there and we’re guided by our medical team on that,” said Magilton. “Odhran Casey got a good 60 or 70 minutes and it was always the intention to bring him off, and Coran Madden got more minutes and showed what he’s all about.

"We’ve also left players out who have done well and they’re chomping at the bit, too.

“In the first-half, each team nullified the other’s threats.

“We talked at half-time about raising intensity and raising our levels because we’ve still got so much to play for. Cup Final places are up for grabs and we still have to secure seventh.

“It’s important, of course, that we won and it’s another clean sheet, but we certainly have to be better than that, too.”

Madden is undoubtedly one of the Irish League’s most exciting young talents and Cliftonville’s Head of Academy Marc Smyth, who has worked with him since the age of five, insists he has all the qualities to succeed.

"In life you always have outliers...you have a generic path to where things go but you'll have outliers,” said Smyth in an interview earlier this year. “Coran has been the best player at the club since he was five and he has never changed...the thing with Coran is he has everything.

"His attitude is what makes him even better. He's an unbelievable kid.

"He was actually the first kid that came when we started our skills school.

"I've watched him grow and his personality is unbelievable...I've never heard him speak back to anybody and you'll never have to tell him anything twice.

"My belief is to give these lads a chance because they'll never let you down.

"The fans want to see it and that's what gets fans off their seats. Sean Moore was the prime example.

"Thirty or 40 local kids who were friends with Sean came to every game and when he scored it was like the World Cup! He was in the crowd with them and that's something you love to see.”