Declan Devine hints at further Glentoran transfer activity in 'next couple of days'
Glentoran manager Declan Devine has hinted at further transfer activity with his hope to have “another body or two in over the next couple of days”.
Devine has already moved to bring Jack Malone and Ben Gallagher to The Oval, while Shane McEleney became the latest player to depart the Glens after joining Ballymena United on Monday.
David Fisher, Frankie Hvid and Jonny Russell have also left on permanent deals this month while Lorcan Donnelly, Nathaniel Ferris and Charlie Lindsay are enjoying Premiership loan moves.
Glentoran sealed Irish Cup progression on Tuesday evening, beating third-tier Strabane Athletic 4-0 to set up a sixth round encounter against Amateur League outfit Drumaness Mills next month.
The Glens also remain in the hunt for League Cup glory – they face Coleraine in the semi-finals on Wednesday – and are chasing an automatic European spot in the Premiership, currently sitting 10 points behind leaders Larne.
As they look to compete on all fronts, Devine is planning to further bolster his squad and expects activity in the coming days.
"It’s (squad rotation) really important because I believe we have a really strong squad,” he told the club’s media channel. “Between now and the end of the season, we need every member of our group.
"Shane left and he has been a brilliant servant for us, I really enjoyed working with him again and I think Ballymena are getting a quality player, but competition for places is rife.
"We’ll hopefully have another body or two in over the next couple of days, we’ll see how that works out, hopefully we can do that.
"The players we have here at the minute, I’ve either signed them or tried to keep them, and everybody here is pulling in one way.
"The biggest focus now is on the next game. We have a huge month ahead of us, the next four or five weeks, and we want to be in the mix for everything.”
Pat Hoban continued his fine season by scoring twice in Tuesday’s Irish Cup win while Jordan Stewart and MJ Kamson-Kamara also found the net against Strabane.
"The biggest respect we can pay them is the team that we put out,” he added. “We picked a very strong side.
"There were players there like Dylan (Connolly) and Danny (Amos) who needed minutes and it was good to get Jack Malone back on the pitch, it’s unfortunate he picked up a couple of knocks.
"All in all, it was a professional job. I felt we were in control of the game. We prepared all week knowing Strabane have a good side with good players and we picked a very strong squad.
"I’m delighted to get a couple of the young players on towards the end because it’s going unnoticed...you see with Jamie McDonnell this week, the players this club have produced over the years, to get three of our young lads who are sitting top of the U20 league table, it was great to get them minutes.”