Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
STUDENTS PASS BOTTLE TEST
Colin wants Whites to show killer instinct
LISBURN DISTILLERY boss Colin Mcilwaine has urged his players to develop the vital act of killing games off.
The Whites were on course for a win which would have sent them third in the Premier Intermediate League table on Saturday.
But Banbridge Town’s Michael Allison snatched two of those points away from them with a dramatic late equaliser.
Instead of going into third, Distillery remain fifth – now 11 points behind leaders Dundela.
Should they win their game in hand, they would be seven behind the promotion places though.
But Mcilwaine insists if they’re to get anywhere close to that they will need to be nothing but ruthless from here on in.
“Saturday was a hard one to take,” he admitted.
“The manner of their equaliser coming so late definitely hurt. On the balance of play Banbridge will feel a draw was probably the least they deserved. They are the best team in the league, in my opinion.
“They play some excellent football and pose problems from all over the pitch.
“We were seconds away from beating them which says a lot for the quality we have ourselves.
“So we take the positives from it even though it was disappointing at the time.
“If we had scored a second goal it would have been a different game because we had chances.
“Banbridge had their chances too but we were defending so well.
“It’s looking increasingly difficult to catch Dundela and Queen’s now but we will not be giving up.
“We will fight for everything in every game because if we’re still within touching distance at the split, you could end up with five cup finals.
“That’s always been our aim – try and be in the top six at the split and in with a chance of a top two place. There’s a lot of football still to play this season.”
Saturday’s intense affair at Crystal Park continued Lisburn Distillery’s run of being involved in energetic encounters in recent times.
The week before they booked their place in the quarter-finals of the Match Intermediate Cup with a come-from-behind win at Crumlin United.
Prior to that they were pushed all the way by Dunloy in the same competition, having opened their PIL year with a 1-1 home draw against Tobermore United.
For Mcilwaine, the cup run has been a real positive sign of progression.
And he has told his squad to seize the opportunity which is now knocking.
He said: “A cup run is good for the club as a whole because it gives everyone a lift.
“We have managed to keep the team together which has helped with the continuity. The further you go the more seriously you take it.
“The Intermediate Cup is a big, big competition and we would love to get to the final of it. We’re now two wins from the final so it’s a big opportunity.
“We’ve played Queen’s a lot in the past few seasons so we know each other very well.
“It’s a game I’m really looking forward to even if it is another fixture on top of the league games.
“March is definitely going to be a busy month but you want to be involved in big games at the business end of the season.
“It just means everyone trying to keep mentally strong and focused in each and every game.”