Mark Surgenor insists Carrick Rangers 'still up for the fight' in battle to preserve Premiership status
Carrick Rangers assistant manager Mark Surgenor says their battling mentality which helped secure a dramatic 1-1 draw against Ballymena United last weekend shows his side are “still up for the fight” to preserve Premiership status.
After Loughgall were beaten by Portadown, it’s now confirmed that Carrick will enter an end-of-season play-off with the Championship’s second-placed finishers – likely to be one of H&W Welders, Annagh United or Limavady United – as they look to remain in Northern Ireland’s top-flight.
Stephen Baxter’s side seemed destined for a 20th defeat of the season at The Showgrounds before David Cushley struck an equaliser in the 96th minute to help build some much-needed momentum, following up their 4-1 victory over Portadown with another positive point.
This season marks Carrick’s sixth consecutive campaign in the Premiership following their promotion in 2019 and Surgenor says they are ready for the battle ahead.
"That's the sort of fight and resolve we're going to need if we want to stay in the league,” Surgenor told the club’s media channel. “It's great to see that coming out this late in the season and it shows we're still up for the fight.
"We're going to keep playing and go into this play-off game off the back of showing that we can go deep into a game and getting a goal.
"I'm really pleased to see that and really pleased for Cush coming off the bench and scoring.
"We're getting to a stage where we have a full panel to pick from and where players are now fighting for a place in the squad as opposed to just fighting for a position in the team.
"That's good for us as a coaching staff that we have to make big decisions and that's going to drive us on."
Carrick received a major boost with Paul Heatley returning from injury last weekend, marking his first appearance since February, but were also dealt a pre-match blow with Cian O’Malley limping out during the warm-up.
"Any last minute change is disruptive for everyone involved,” added Surgenor. “The mental side, the physical side of it...we came out to do our warm-up and everything was going as planned, then Cian pulls up with a groin injury.
"BBR (Ben Buchanan-Rolleston) stepped in very well. It’s disruptive with set-pieces and everything that goes with it, but BBR is a very accomplished replacement and did a very good job.”