Manager’s programme notes
Posted : 14th October 2022
Tonight it will be good to return to Windsor Park after an unprecedented sequence of 10 successive away games in various competitions.
We will face a Glentoran team that will arrive in good form and aiming to maintain their impressive start to the season.
We are playing catch up with our fixtures and the full depth and strength of our squad is sure to be tested over the coming weeks.
We remain involved in three knock out competitions and look forward to a League Cup quarter-final tie, a County Antrim Shield semi-final tie at home to Glentoran and a fourth round SPFL Trust Trophy tie away to Kelty Hearts.
The Premiership as always, remains our number one target and we know there will be strong challenges at the top of the table from the other Belfast clubs, as well as Larne and Coleraine.
There is a long way to go in this title race and all of the top teams will take points off each other and such is strength in depth in this league, teams in the bottom six have already shown that they can take points off the top teams.
On the injury front, we will be missing Ben Hall and Jordan Stewart tonight. Niall Quinn will be a doubt after he limped off towards the end of the first half of Tuesday’s County Antrim Shield tie at Solitude.
We are hopeful that we will have Chris Shields available tonight and in recent weeks, it’s been pleasing to welcome back Conor Pepper and Jimmy Callacher following injury spells.
I want to wish Niall Quinn every success for his Testimonial function at the Crowne Plaza hotel tomorrow night and I want to congratulate Chris McKee on his goal for Northern Ireland under 21s in a recent friendly game against Scotland at the Blanchflower stadium.
Today is the seventh anniversary of my appointment as Linfield manager and it’s an achievement I’m very proud of. Our focus has not been on celebrating but rather in trying to win tonight’s hugely important and challenging Premiership game. Despite the trophy successes we have achieved over the past seven years, our focus remains firmly fixed on the next one which is always the most important.
It would be remiss of me not to thank my trusted assistant Ross Oliver and other members of the coaching and backroom staff who’ve been with me for all or some of the seven years I’ve enjoyed here to date.
I want to thank our supporters who’ve spent hard earned money from Moyola Park and Coleraine to Buckie Thistle and other venues over the past 10 consecutive away games. I know times are tough financially but your loyalty and dedication have been greatly appreciated. We will certainly need your passionate and positive vocal encouragement, as we aim to make up ground on the teams at the top of the league tonight