Gary Boyle feels Warrenpoint Town's derby win 'as good a performance as we’ve had'
Warrenpoint Town manager Gary Boyle praised the composure of his side after they produced a controlled performance to secure a 3-0 Championship win over rivals Newry City.
Adam Carroll opened the scoring against his former club before turning provider for Michael Leddy to double the advantage shortly after the restart.
Rory Powell then completed the scoring from the penalty spot as Warrenpoint secured a convincing derby victory.
For Boyle, the most encouraging aspect was the way his players handled the emotion of the occasion.
“It was a very composed and clinical performance,” he said. “There wasn’t loads and loads of quality in the game, but I think the moments of quality probably came from ourselves.
“It’s probably as good a performance as we’ve had, certainly this season, but even going back into the Championship.”
Boyle was particularly pleased with the way Warrenpoint operated without the ball, insisting they remained disciplined rather than allowing the derby atmosphere to affect their approach.
“We were composed out of possession and pleasingly, when we had the ball, we were able to get that first pass away and then hit runners where we had space,” he added. “Out of possession we were very controlled.
"We didn’t jump out of shape and didn’t leave them much space to play in behind or between the lines.”
Boyle admitted previous experiences, including the defeat to Ards, had influenced his approach to the derby.
“Against Ards we got too emotional and that’s my fault as much as anyone else’s,” he said. “We thought we were in the ascendancy and went to try and win the game, they caught us and we ended up losing that game.
“I take that fully on the chin, which is why we forced taking the emotion out of the game and always playing with that composure and control when possible.”
Boyle also highlighted Powell’s contribution after the young midfielder played a part in all three goals.
“Rory is a younger player with huge potential,” he added. “He’s already living his potential because he’s had a serious amount of senior football at such a young age.”
The win leaves Warrenpoint eighth in the table with six points from four games, ahead of Newry on goal difference.
Boyle was already looking ahead to another difficult away trip against Loughgall.
“We’ve set standards now and we can’t drop them,” he said. “Loughgall will be a massive test, another away day.
"We’ll have to be on our game to get anything out of it.”