'What a reaction' - Glentoran boss Declan Devine hails dominant victory over Cliftonville as Glens bounce back from BetMcLean Cup final defeat
Glentoran boss Declan Devine hailed the reaction of his players as the Glens bounced back from their BetMcLean Cup final defeat against Linfield to seal a 3-0 Irish Premiership victory over Cliftonville at The Oval.
Daniel Larmour fired the hosts ahead in the 25th minute with a header from close range before a double from Pat Hoban after the break wrapped up all three points for Glentoran.
It was a dominant performance by the home side, who closed the gap to leaders Larne to two points.
“Brilliant, really, really happy, what a reaction,” Devine told the club’s media channel.
“I thought second half we played some outstanding football. I thought we were really good.
“We had a really good second half, we were able to rest a couple of guys and we were able to get people off.
“Disappointed we only scored three, but listen, if you had offered me that before the game, I would have been over the moon.
“Atmosphere in the place again [was excellent], fans getting behind the team, and as I say, a big reaction and really important win for us.”
Devine brushed off criticism of his team in the wake of Sunday’s cup final defeat against ‘Big Two’ rivals Linfield and said he was “really happy” with his side going into the title run-in.
“I don't know if we can be too critical of this team. Yes, we lost the final on Sunday, fine margins, but we're really happy with what we have here for the run-in,” he said.
“I'm really delighted leading on to the last six games.
“We’ve serious competition for places, hopefully Joe Thomson will be back next week, and that gives us nearly a full squad to pick from.
“So it's testimony to the players because they're really hungry. I thought we were really aggressive in our appetite to get the ball back. I thought some of the football on display at times was magnificent.”
The Glens host Coleraine on Saturday at the Oval and Devine said it has been a “relentless” challenge for his players.
“The games have been relentless and I’ve been doing this a long time, and I’ve never seen a schedule like it,” he said.
“Again, as I’ve said, it’s full credit to the players to get themselves ready for every game.
“This team’s progressing, the squad’s progressing great, the club’s progressing great, the atmosphere around the place is fantastic, but we’ll not get carried away and we’ve six cup finals coming our way.
“Every win, every point, every goal, every clean sheet is going to be important moving forward.”