Oran Kearney expecting reaction from Dungannon Swifts as they travel without influential duo

The Swifts were beaten 6-0 by Glentoran on Tuesday night as old boy Niall McGinn netted a hat-trick to make it a miserable night for his former club.Kearney's men found it difficult to overcome the resistance of Carrick Rangers at The Showgrounds but their patience paid off as Matthew Shevlin netted a 70th-minute penalty to bag all three points.

The victory came at a cost as Conor McKendry went off injured, whilst Jamie Glackin was given a straight red card for a tackle on Steven Gordon, meaning the midfielder is suspended for the next three games.

However, Kearney was quick to point out that those absences will present opportunities for other members of his squad to step forward.

"We will be expecting a reaction from Dungannon and it's tough every time we go there," Kearney said. "In particular, they've got a really good home record at this moment in time and have picked up a few notable results over the last few weeks.

"We aren't sure about Conor's injury and we're hoping it's not too serious at this point in time. But we will have to wait and see.

"I haven't seen any clips of the red card.

"But my initial view was that the two players went into the tackle and ‘Glacks’ got a large part of the ball.

"He was already on a yellow card and I don't know if the tackle merited a second yellow.

"But, again, if it is a foul then it's possibly a second caution.

"I don't know if it's a straight red in that scenario.

"Those players potentially being out gives opportunity to others.

"Jack O'Mahony and Aaron Jarvis were both flying before picking up an illness.

"And all of a sudden people jump in, grab shirts and it's hard for them to get back in.

"We have players there who are kicking their heels and can't wait to get back playing.

"So it's up to those guys to step up to the mark now."

Despite a gap opening up between the top six teams in the league and bottom six, Kearney stressed that there are no easy games in the Danske Bank Premiership.

"I think it's something we tell the players all the time that when you play football in this league, or any league, the wins aren't handed to you and it's not a fairytale where you just roll up, go out, score your goals, take your win, and go home again," he continued. "Through experience - and we've got a good group in there - we've been through many types of those scenarios where you've got to dig that little bit deeper.

"There's been weeks where we've gone out there and possibly score an early goal or two and it can be one of those nice days where you can half enjoy it...but on nights like Tuesday, you've got to really work for it."

PREMIERSHIP: (Saturday) – Carrick Rangers v Glenavon, Cliftonville v Ballymena United, Dungannon Swifts v Coleraine, Portadown v Linfield; (Sunday) – Newry City v Larne; (Monday) – Glentoran v Crusaders