Glentoran face Linfield at the Oval on Saturday in what is undoubtedly the tie of the round in the Tennents Irish Cup. The ‘Big Two’ have met twice in the Danske Bank Premiership already this season with both games being very tight affairs; a 2-1 win for the Blues back in early October (Gary Haveron’s first game in charge at the Oval) was followed by a 1-1 draw on Boxing Day.
The Glens will go into the game in a positive frame of mind following their emphatic 5-0 win at Portadown last Tuesday evening. Strikers Curtis Allen and Nacho Novo scored in that game and manager, Haveron is likely to pair the two up front again. Another player going through an excellent spell is Chris Lavery. The winger scored his first goal of the season in the Shamrock Park victory and provided assists for 3 of the other 4 goals. Ross Redman, another player having a great run at present, set up the other goal, scored by Novo.
For Saturday’s encounter Glentoran are likely to be without defender, Calum Birney who has missed the last couple of games with a thigh injury. James Ferrin or Tiarnan McAuley are likely to deputise. Marcus Kane should be back in the squad though following his comeback appearance from the bench last Tuesday night.
Both Willie Garrett and David Scullion remain on the long term injured list. Scullion is making progress and could be back in contention in about 6 weeks whilst Garrett’s rehabilitation should see him back running in the next couple of weeks.
We would remind all supporters that this is an all ALL TICKET FIXTURE.
The Board of Directors at Glentoran Football Club would again request that all supporters travelling to the Oval by private car, consider the local residents when deciding where and how to park.
Thank you for your cooperation.