In-form striker makes 'easy decision' to join Ballymena United for first taste of Premiership football

It has been a remarkable rise for McNickle in recent times having gone from playing for Wellington Rec in the BDFL Intermediate Division in 2023 to now sealing a top-flight move with Ballymena two years later.

The 25-year-old has thrived with every step up the divisions so far, scoring 15 goals in 24 league appearances for Lisburn Distillery during the 2023/24 campaign before netting a further 16 in his first season at Newry last term, but couldn’t stop them avoiding Championship relegation.

McNickle has now signed a two-year contract with Jim Ervin’s Sky Blues and wants to continue on an upward trajectory.

"I'm delighted to be here" said McNickle. "When the opportunity to play Premiership football came about, it was an easy decision.

"I've shown in my career I can score goals at every level I've played at and I'm confident I can do the same in the Premiership.

“It was a no brainer (to join Ballymena). This is a big club that has visions of success and hopefully I can assist it in that."

McNickle’s arrival presents a major boost for Ballymena, who finished last season in ninth, and Ervin is backing his new striker to make an impact.

"Ryan has grabbed a lot of headlines at Newry and his numbers in a highly competitive Championship, playing for a club who struggled, speak for themselves." he said. "He's a determined kid wanting to prove himself at this level.

"He could've chose other routes but he sees what we're looking to do here.

"He came on the radar last year at Lisburn, took the step up to Newry and continued his impressive goal scoring record.

"We've seen it's something we maybe don't have a lot of in the squad, so we're delighted to get him into the building."