Glentoran's Cooney Demands Response After Linfield Defeat
Glentoran's Ryan Cooney has called for a response from his team after their 2-1 defeat against Linfield at Windsor Park last weekend. The Glens are looking to bounce back against Ballymena United on Friday night.
What Happened?
The Glens suffered a disappointing defeat against their rivals, Linfield, in their second league game of the season. Cooney believes that the team's performance was not up to par and that they could have done better.
Why It Matters for Glentoran
The defeat against Linfield has put pressure on the team to perform well against Ballymena United. Cooney is expecting a tough test against the Sky Blues, who have made significant player recruitment in the summer.
What Comes Next?
Cooney is confident that the team can bounce back from the defeat and produce a good performance against Ballymena United. He believes that the team has the quality and experience to compete with the Sky Blues.
League standing: 2nd in Premiership, 6 pts, 2W-0D-1L from 3 games, recent form WLW.
Goals this season: 5 scored, 2 conceded (+3 goal difference).
Title race: 1 point behind leaders Coleraine FC.
Next fixture: vs Crusaders FC (away, 2026-12-19) (4th in the table).
The Glens will be looking to put their Big Two disappointment behind them as they prepare to take on Ballymena United in the Irish Premiership on Friday evening (7.45pm). Cooney insists that the team needs to put their focus on the upcoming game and not dwell on the defeat against Linfield.
"We need to do that again come Friday night as we don't want anything to linger on," Cooney said. "We had a good few chats this week reflecting on the defeat and everyone had the same feelings on it. We have to use the disappointment as fuel for the fire and make sure that come Friday night we are raring to go once again, and we produce a performance we know we are capable of."
Cooney is expecting a tough test against Ballymena United following their significant player recruitment in the summer. Boss Oran Kearney has brought in several high-profile additions and it has already paid dividends following their 3-0 opening day victory over Linfield. The Sky Blues slipped to a surprise 2-1 loss at Crusaders last weekend but Cooney isn't reading too much into that result.
"It's certainly been a very busy summer for Ballymena and I have to say I've been impressed with the calibre of players they have brought in," said the defender. "They have recruited a lot of quality and experienced Irish League players who have played at this level for a number of years. The likes of Jonny Addis, Scot Whiteside and Chris McKee have won so much in the game and they along with the rest of the squad will be big players for them this campaign."
Image Prompt
A photorealistic image of an anonymous Glentoran defender in a red jersey with white sleeves, a white collar, and a pair of white shorts. The defender is standing in front of a blurred background with a shallow depth of field, 85mm f/1.4 lens, and a floodlight rim light. The defender is looking directly at the camera with a determined expression, and their eyes are sharp and focused. The jersey is made of a smooth, clean material, and the colours are vibrant and accurate. The image should be taken from a tight waist-up crop, with the defender's face and upper body filling the frame.
