James Singleton: We owe Glentoran fans a performance against Linfield after Portadown disappointment
Glentoran star James Singleton says the players owe their supporters a positive performance against bitter rivals Linfield tonight after disappointing them last weekend during a 2-0 defeat to Portadown.
The Glens’ inconsistent league run continued as former player Shay McCartan and Ryan Mayse netted in the second half, condemning the hosts to their seventh Premiership loss in 17 matches this term.
However, they are still only three points adrift of second-placed Cliftonville and will look to take confidence from last month’s 3-1 victory over the table-topping Blues at Windsor Park where three unanswered second half goals provided the season’s highlight.
“There’s no better way to get back into the mix,” said Singleton. “We did well against Linfield with a really good second half performance and we will need more of the same on Friday.
“We owe the manager, coaches and fans a performance after last week’s defeat to Portadown. It was a really disappointing performance - we didn't deserve anything from the game and we let the manager down.
“We need to put in a big performance and if we do we can match anyone in the league. Linfield are in good form but in this rivalry, form goes out the window and it’s a big game for us to get back on track.”
If Glentoran are to start climbing the Premiership table, they’ll have to address their home form with Devine’s men winning just three of nine matches at The Oval while no team has scored fewer goals (six) in front of home support.
“I don’t think we try to play any differently at home than away, the missed penalties have hurt us,” added Singleton. “There’s been a bit of bad luck but I can remember beating Linfield 4-0 at The Oval last year and every team is struggling for consistency.
"We will give it our all to get the three points on Friday. After the win at Windsor Park we had a great win at Dungannon and knocked Carrick out of the Co Antrim Shield.
“There was three wins on the bounce but we missed a penalty in the game against Carrick to win that one. Performance levels have been high – even in the Larne game we lost with a penalty which was probably never a penalty.
“Last week was a disappointment but this is a massive game and the players will be ready for it - we are more than capable of winning it.”