Rodney McAree sends clear warning to Dungannon Swifts stars after 'awful' display

Regardless of result on Saturday, the Swifts were guaranteed a top-half position for a second consecutive campaign, but had an opportunity to leapfrog Cliftonville into fifth with victory.

In an uncharacteristic display, Dungannon fell behind after nine minutes when Iestyn Hughes punished the Co Tyrone club for failing to clear their lines from a long throw.

For only the fourth time this season, McAree’s men failed to score in a home league match while Bangor ended an eight-game winless run and collected just a second away clean sheet in the process.

Dungannon’s Irish Cup defence remains on track having progressed to the semi-final stage – they’ll face a repeat of last term’s decider against Cliftonville at Windsor Park on April 3.

However, McAree has warned his players that they must focus on the immediate task at hand or risk missing out.

"If that's the case (thinking ahead), those players won't play on those big occasions,” he said. "You can play your way in to the team, but you can also play your way out of the team.

"I'll go and watch it again, it just felt as if we lacked enthusiasm, we didn't work hard.

"If you look at our home game not so long ago against Coleraine and you compare the Coleraine performance to the performance today, you wonder where the hell today is coming from.

"But I'm also realistic and understand that as a player, sometimes you turn up and collectively you have an off day and it doesn't go your way and it doesn't happen for you and today was one of those days.

"It's probably giving the players a little bit of an excuse, but it has to be better than what it was today.

“It was awful. It's so disappointing because you train all week and your two training sessions are excellent, probably as good as it has been for a long time.

"You go into it with a level of expectation that you feel as if you're going to reach heights and you're going to do this and you're going to do that, and unfortunately we fail to do anything.

"I don't think we've hardly had a shot on goal – if we've had a shot in goal.

"We're missing personnel in certain areas, but that's giving the players that were on the pitch an excuse as well.

"I believe what we had on the pitch today is more than enough quality to cause teams problems.

"But credit to Bangor, they come here today, set themselves up well, had the better opportunities in the game, deserve to win the game and take a good three points away and probably secure their future in the league as well.

"Disappointing, really, really disappointing day with big games coming up, and if we turn up like that, we have no chance.

"We have to get back to the levels that we know we can reach.”

The Swifts will begin their Premiership split schedule with a home clash against Coleraine on Saturday before hosting Linfield on April 7.

Their final three league matches – against Glentoran, Cliftonville and Larne – will all be played away from Stangmore Park.