POST-MATCH VERDICT: 'You'll not break those boys' - Paddy McLaughlin still holding faith in Glenavon

Here’s the verdict from Glenavon boss Paddy McLaughlin:

ZERO POINTS FROM EIGHT GAMES...

"You'll not break those boys in terms of spirit.

"We knew how difficult the season was going to be before we started in terms of part-time and full-time.

"We knew that was the challenge (as a part-time club) facing us.

"The boys are a really, really tight group and we all work extremely hard behind the scenes.

"I know supporters don't want to hear that, they want to see points on the board and us climbing the league.

"But I do believe that will come - over, hopefully, the next couple of weeks.

"It's almost a league split in half but over our next five or six fixtures are teams in or around ourselves, so big fixtures for us.

"We're not taking a lot of positives...we hate defeats, there's no doubt.

"But the work-rate and quality of play...we've matched, especially the full-time sides, really well.

"They're all difficult tests (in the Premiership) but we didn't give up last week or today....you can see that in the performance.

"We came here to try and get points, with a plan which, up until the hour mark, we carried out really well.”

FUTURE TESTS...

"We're playing sides now around that bottom six over the next couple of weeks so it's incredibly important we pick up points.

"Every fixture this year we've had moments...moments when we've been on top, moments where we've been a bit lapse and got punished.

"It's not a 'win or bust' game (home to Crusaders on Saturday)...it's an important game, like the next five or six fixtures - sides that will, maybe, be in or around the bottom six.

"So if that's the league we're going to be playing in this year it's important we do pick up points.

"All that's missing at the minute is we just need a break, that bit of luck, a result.

"Once that comes into play everything changes - it just breaks that run, all that criticism we're facing at the minute.

"We're mad-keen to get our first result, our first points.

"It could be the turning point.

"We're sticking to the belief that when we do get our break, when we do get our points on the board, our lucky break or anything to change the fortune we're going through at the minute, the whole season could be flipped on its head."

OVERALL PERFORMANCE...

"We knew last week going to Larne was going to be tough, we knew coming in today was going to be tough - two of the title contenders.

"Coming to Windsor Park, home of Linfield as champions, almost mission impossible.

"But we had a belief that we could come here and frustrate, which I think we did for large parts of the game.

"Right up to the second goal especially I thought we were well organised and the boys worked unbelievably hard to nullify the threat.

"An error for the first goal we could probably prevent but we were happy enough at half-time the ways things were going.

"The second goal, again, is soft with a couple of passes around the edge of the box.

"At that stage it's 2-0 and probably game over...I know there's a long way to go but it's a significant moment.

"We've worked so hard and find ourselves 2-0 down.”

GLENAVON THREAT...

"Disappointed with the goals we conceded and I don't think we carried any threat or enough of a threat as a group of players.

"With set-pieces or on the counter-attack I don't think we got bodies forward enough or caused Linfield enough problems.

"So a lot of disappointment, especially for the players.

"To have put in such a shift over the last two games to come away with no points is bitterly disappointing because they've deserved a lot more.”