Irish League Football

Image source, Inpho

Coleraine boss Ruaidhri Higgins said "dramatic is the right word" after his side snatched a late winner against Glentoran deep into injury time in Tuesday's Irish Premiership game at the Oval.

The game appeared to be heading for a 1-1 draw before substitute Lewis McGregor pounced in the 94th minute to extend the league leaders' unbeaten run to 14 games.

It was also the Bannsiders second late winner in five days after Aidan Wilson's late strike earned a 3-2 win against Ballymena.

"Dramatic is the right word, I actually didn't realise we were so deep into injury time whenever we got the winner so I was delighted when I heard that," Higgins told BBC Sport NI.

"It's a huge win and it summarises the last four or five days and the character that we have in our group to turn potentially two points into six which is huge.

"We spoke about it in pre-season, we speak about it all the time - we have starters and we have finishers and we don't look at them any other way.

"Our team on Saturday (at home to Limavady United) will probably be different to that which played tonight. We've such a good group of lads, they all understand that you don't achieve anything with 12/13 players, we need the group and the group has been fantastic so far."

Higgins also paid tribute to former Glens boss Declan Devine, who departed the role on Monday following the club's poor start to the season.

"First of all I'm really gutted to see Declan move on from the job, he's someone I've known since I was probably seven or eight years of age when he was working with Maiden City and I was a wee nipper trying to become a footballer," said Higgins.

"He's a really personable fella, really warm-hearted person and a brilliant person, I hope he's okay – I know it can be difficult, I'm sure when he's ready and fit and feeling up for it he'll be back in the game, if it was easy everyone would be at it."

Image source, Inpho

Glentoran interim manager Paddy McCourt says he has "no interest" in taking the job on a permanent basis and accepts "absolute" responsibility for the club's current position.

Following a poor start to the Irish Premiership season, an agreement over Declan Devine's departure was reached on Monday, leaving McCourt and Tim McCann in charge of the team for Tuesday night's 2-1 defeat by Coleraine at The Oval.

The Glens sit eighth in the table, 12 points off pacesetters Bannsiders after taking just seven points from their first seven games.

"It was very difficult to prepare for the game after a manager loses his job," said McCourt.

"There's no secret that some players might be happy that the manager's lost his job because they mightn't have been in the team or whatever it was.

"But you know there'll be a lot of boys hurting in there, boys that he brought to the club and a lot of boys that he's quite close to so it was difficult to prepare them.

"The club are undertaking a process now to appoint a manager, Paul (Millar) asked me on Sunday night would I stay around and help Tim (McCann) out until that process happens.

"Once that happens we'll have another conversation but under no circumstances am I trying to audition for the job, I've no interest in the job I feel absolutely wholly responsible for where we are."

McCourt added that he "doesn't see myself being here without" Devine.

"I don't know what way the process will go but I know the process has started, Declan's left with his head held high, when looks at himself in the mirror he knows he gave everything to this job.

"He's the first to admit this season hasn't been good enough, unfortunately we just fell a wee bit short but Declan is a proud man and he gave everything to the job and I'm sure he'll take great heart from that."

Image source, Pacemaker

Linfeld manager David Healy hailed his side's "togetherness" as they made it five-straight league wins after an opening day defeat.

Kyle McClean curled home a late winner against Dungannon Swifts at Stangmore Park to see the Blues clear in second and one point behind leaders Coleraine.

The response to a 3-0 home defeat by Ballymena United on opening day has pleased the Linfield boss who hit out at the "negativity" of the club's summer signings.

"It's important we win games at Linfield and nobody knows that better than I do - I'm always first to take responsibility when we don't," Healy told BBC Sport NI.

"There's always negativity around some of the people we bring into this football club, that players aren't that good and whatever else. I must be some manager if we keep winning games and winning trophies year on year.

"We are probably a bit shorter on players in that we don't have 24 or 25 players like we did last year and the year before, but what we do have is really tight-knit and a togetherness.

"After the Ballymena game, they could have gone the other way where we lose a couple of games and the pressure mounts. Credit to the players - they have reacted in a positive way."

McClean echoed his manager's sentiments and felt their 2-1 league win over Glentoran which followed the Ballymena loss highlighted the fighting qualities within the squad.

"There was a lot of noise after the first game of the season and understandably so," McClean said after Saturday's win.

"We were hugely disappointed ourselves, but we had to come out fighting.

"There was a lot of talk about the Glentoran game, a derby game and they were coming to put a nail in our coffin, but that was the start of the fightback.

"It's been a collective where we have all been fighting for each other and we saw that tonight."

Image source, Pacemaker

Cliftonville manager Jim Magilton insists his players must "come down to earth" from their 3-1 win over Carrick Rangers as they prepare to visit Larne on Tuesday [19:45 BST].

The Reds came from a goal behind to claim victory which moves them into third, four points behind leaders Coleraine.

Kyle McClelland cancelled out Caleb Hawthorne's opener for the hosts at Taylors Avenue, while goals either side of the break from Ben Quinn and Dean McMaster made it back-to-back league wins for Magilton's side.

The Reds' boss hailed the impact of his young players but is aware they can't rest on their laurels before Tuesday's trip to Inver Park.

"You give them a platform to play so it's up to them to grasp it, take it and they are," Magilton told BBC Sport NI.

"Ben just needed games and McMaster we knew about - we''re thrilled to have him. He's an outstanding technician and he gives us that quality.

"It's about the group and the team. We're starting to come together and it's important we keep momentum going. Winning and results always help that.

"It's always about players' confidence and hopefully they'll be high, but we have to come down to earth pretty quickly as we have a tough game on Tuesday night."

Cliftonville are two points ahead of the defending champions but have played as many games more.

Larne's games in hand stem from their involvement in Europe and Magilton has been impressed by how Gary Haveron's side bounced back from the heartbreak of missing out on a place in the league phase of the Conference League.

"It's still very much early doors in the season," he accepts.

"[I've] huge respect for Larne as a football club, the manager and players outstanding, deserved champions.

"[They'll be] disappointed to exit Europe but it shows what quality they have in that dressing room to bounce back and win games."

Image source, Pacemaker

Portadown manager David Jeffrey says he will continue to "support" and "encourage" his players as they seek their first points of the season.

The Shamrock Park outfit fell to a 2-0 home defeat by 10-man Larne on Saturday as Tomas Cosgrove capitalised on a mistake to give the defending champions an early lead.

Although the Inver Reds lost Kevin O'Hara to a red card for a high foot before the break, Sean Graham would seal the points with his side's second goal 11 minutes after the restart, leaving the Ports with nothing to show for their efforts after six games.

"There has been things that are positive, there has been aspects of our play that I'm pleased with, but the be all and end all is what you do in both boxes," Jeffrey told BBC Sport NI.

"You have to be able to defend better and be more clinical when opportunities arise. Had we taken our chances, we could even have got a point and those are the bits that are tough.

"You have to continue to support your players, encourage them. They have got to take responsibility as well, but ultimately it's about trying to encourage them, trying to support them, trying to help them eradicate the simplest of errors so we are not punished in the way we are."

Portadown's task doesn't get easier on Tuesday [19:45 BST] when they host a Linfield side that has won five league games on the spin since their opening day defeat by Ballymena United.

"There is a limited time to recover but the players will do that and we'll look forward to Tuesday evening," Jeffrey continued.

"It's another opportunity to see if we can get some points on the board.

"We know the qualities of Linfied as we knew of Larne.

"Today we tried to get something from the game. It was our own faults we didn't but we will go again on Tuesday."