Paddy McLaughlin hails Cliftonville's ‘heart and desire’

The Reds were rocked as Coleraine went 2-0 in front midway through the second half after goals from Matthew Shevlin and Stephen Lowry.

But McLaughlin went to his bench - throwing on Chris Curran, Joe Gormley and Paul O’Neill to help complete a famous victory.

Both Gormley and O’Neill bagged a brace apiece to secure what could be the first part of an unbelievable ‘Treble’.

“It was incredible from the players to come back the way they did,” said Reds chief Paddy McLaughlin.

“You’re 2-0 down in a cup final, you’re looking at the clock and it hasn’t been your day.

“You feel as if it’s going to be a sad story, but the character and resilience they showed to get back in the game was incredible.

“So much has been said about the players but you’ll never beat this team for heart and desire; you couldn’t put a price on that. There’s no one in our league who can match that and that’s what got us over the line.

“We are very blessed to have these kinds of players. I’m leaving out boys like Jamie Harney and Seanna Foster; Jamie has been one of our best players in the past few years but the bar has been raised since the summer but everyone contributes.

“There are legends of this club we have been able to turn to in Chris Curran and Joe and we are so blessed to have them to call on. Having the likes of Colin Coates to come on and guide boys through the games is so important too.

“At 2-0 I knew I had to get certain boys on the pitch. When you have Paul O’Neill and Joe Gormley in reserve it is no real gamble.

“You know they will score goals. You always wonder if it is going to be one of those sad stories when there’s disappointment on the big stage but we knew if we got those boys on the pitch, they will do what they do.

“If you blink your eyes, you know Joe is going to be gone - he’s that lively. And Paul will work his socks off.

“We needed them both and the influence of Chris Curran, our captain. All three were superb.

“Their team was on their knees but they dragged them up when they were needed most and got us over the line.”

McLaughlin also praised the Cliftonville supporters as over 11,000 fans across both clubs helped to make it a League Cup final record attendance.

“It was an unbelievable feeling seeing that many Cliftonville fans, even in the warm-up they were there and you could see the excitement,” he said.

“But coming out for the kick-off was amazing. They are the best fans in the country and they’ve proved that time and time again.

“The last couple of home games have pretty much been sold out and they can make it an intimidating atmosphere for any opposition.

“They played a huge part in that game. It wasn’t just the boys who started and the subs, the fans were huge for us. I just hope they understand that because the players appreciate everything.”