By Aaron Hassard
BALLINAMALLARD United boss Mark Stafford admitted his side “didn’t get to show what they were about” as they fell to an opening-day defeat against Ards at Clandeboye Park.
Midfielder James McGrath fired the Mallards ahead on 33 minutes, and Stafford was full of praise for his team’s first-half display.
“Our defensive performance in the first half [was] absolutely outstanding,” said the manager. “Then we hit Ards on the break, it was [a] good finish by James and a good team performance away from home for the first 45 minutes.”
But two goals in six minutes after the restart turned the game in Ards’ favour, with a third 11 minutes from time sealing the points.
“I didn’t even get talking to the dugout, before we had conceded a penalty,” Stafford said. “Four minutes later, we conceded a second following a defensive mix-up. Everything we spoke about at half-time went out the window because we handed the initiative to Ards.
“Then we changed our shape to get an extra striker on, but that left us open defensively and Ards got in behind us to add a third. It ended up being a very disappointing day.”
There were first competitive starts for Lorcan Donnelly, David Jonathan and Marc Walsh, while Callum Moorehead made his first league appearance since December. Stafford was pleased with how the new faces acquitted themselves.
“Lorcan was exceptional in goals, making some great saves and dealing well with set-pieces. Marc Walsh put in a good shift and looked good on the ball. David Jonathan had a good start, while Callum Moorehead caused a lot of problems and was unfortunate not to get a couple of goals himself.”
H&W Welders visit Ferney Park this weekend, and Stafford wants an immediate response.
“They’ve had a strong pre-season, beating some Irish Premiership teams. We didn’t get to show what we were about against Ards but I’m hoping we can show this at home, playing on the front foot and causing them problems.”