Former Glenavon star confident 'we wouldn't be in this mess' if Michael O'Connor had full season

Through his work in the local community with NI Alternatives, Batey visits his old stomping ground on a weekly basis and has noticed a switch in feeling around the Co Armagh club since O’Connor was appointed in October.

The former Northern Ireland international took over on the back of 11 consecutive league losses – the worst start to a top-flight season by any team in 60 years – but has since won five of his eight home matches, including victories over Linfield and Glentoran.

In a league table consisting of points collected across the last 15 matches – the same period as O’Connor’s reign – Glenavon (15) sit ninth ahead of Crusaders (14), Bangor (12) and Ballymena United (nine).

O’Connor’s men still face a huge uphill task to preserve their Premiership status, currently sitting nine points adrift at the bottom.

The Lurgan Blues will need to find an upturn in away fortunes – they’ve lost 13 straight league matches on their travels – but even if Glenavon do suffer relegation, Batey feels O’Connor is the perfect man to rebuild.

"When Mick first came in, I didn't think there was any hope, the feeling around the club was negative,” he said. “Now, there's a lot of people who think we could maybe pull this off, which is great - it's better than having a feeling of being resigned to relegation.

"When you look at the maths, it's tough, but in your heart you're going 'if we can string a few wins together, then you never know'. If anybody can do it, I think it's this manager. I think Mick and his staff deserve applause for what they have done.

"Without talking ill of the manager before (Paddy McLaughlin), but I honestly believe if the current manager was there at the start of this season we wouldn't be in this mess.

"It sounds odd because we're still bottom of the league, but there's a better buzz about the club.

"It would be a fantastic achievement if they can do it, and I think it would be just rewards. They have to keep believing and hopefully they can get those results."

Glenavon recently entered into a strategic partnership with Football International Limited, who will acquire a majority shareholding in the club and are set to provide staged investment across the next five years.

They’ll become the latest Irish League club to accept outside finances when the deal is finalised – shareholders gave the green light at a meeting last month – and Batey believes it could give the club security if they do drop into the Championship.

“The investment gives the club security,” he added. “If they go down, and that's still an if, the Championship isn't what it used to be - it's not easy to get out of.

"If they go down, I genuinely hope the manager stays because I watched them against Linfield and they were super value for their win.

"Their home record is good under Mick so that transfers into the crowd and when I'm out working in the community, you feel that.

"Everyone wants to turn up for home matches and there have been good performances. I hope the players feed off this energy."