Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
MAXIE SWAIN SAINTS ARE NOW WINNERS
By Boss Kelly’s strengthened United proving a harder nut to crack these days
SAINTFIELD UNITED boss Adam Kelly believes their Match Intermediate Cup third round clash with Bangor is a measure of how far they’ve come as a club.
The Saints were the whipping boys of the Amateur League’s Intermediate bloc for years, perennially fighting relegation battles to avoid the drop down into Junior football.
But the last few seasons have seen marked progress, with the strides they have made accelerating under Kelly’s stewardship.
Currently, the High School-based outfit are poised third in Division 1C and out of the promotion places on goal difference alone, while they hit another high on Saturday with a 4-2 Clarence Cup second round defeat of Colin Valley, all of the goals coming courtesy of their man main up front James Sofley.
This weekend, Kelly’s in-form team make the trip to the Bangor Fuels Arena to face Bangor in the Intermediate Cup, with the Saints chief wary of the quality they have in the ranks.
He cites their capture of Glentoran hero Michael Halliday as proof of their continued pulling power, despite their fall from grace over recent years.
Under Hugh Sinclair, the Seasiders are resurgent, however, and are well-placed to make their painful exile from the Irish League a fleeting 15.01.2019 one. They have designs on winning the competition outright, so Kelly knows the game will be a huge test for his team, but is naturally relishing the challenge.
He said: “The Bangor game this season is reward for all their hard work.
“When you see the players they have recruited, they are a very strong side.
“Okay, they may have fallen down a bit, but they are still a big name, they are still a draw for players, so it will be a new experience for our guys and we’re firm underdogs. I don’t think they have lost in the league this year.
“They’ve lost to East Belfast and Crumlin Star in the cups but there’s no shame in that.
“So there’s no expectation on us, we can go out and enjoy ourselves.”
In 27-goal hitman Sofley, however, Saintfield boast a dangerman of their own.
But rather than rely on one player, Kelly reckons it’s the unity of his squad which has underpinned their impressive season.
His first team panel is not all that different to the one he had last year, the key difference being the availability of several influential players.
“We added some numbers over the summer, a couple of local guys who were playing at Comber came and joined us,” explained Kelly.
“But the majority of the squad, it’s the same guys who were there, it’s just we had guys last year for one reason or another, probably about five people, who collectively only made about 20 appearances between them.
“They’ve all now put about 20 appearances in this season each.
“So that and adding a few players to give us extra options has been key.
“Plus the guys have bought into what we were trying to do in pre-season and we have started very well.
“All in all, it’s been very positive the young have and they
and guys stepped up shown that can compete. “Coming from where we were, we’re really enjoying our football and we’re still a very young squad too, and if anything comes from this season, it’s a bonus.”
Peter Strain and James Mulligan are two of those summer arrivals, having both switched from Comber, and Kelly feels the new boys have had a big impact on the season.
“Goalscoring-wise last year, we were a threat to anybody, but we were too soft at the back,” said the Saints boss. “At certain times in the season I had three midfielders playing in the backline, purely because of a shortage of numbers, and David Morrow has taken over as skipper and is back in there, forming a centre-back partnership with Peter.
“And then James Mulligan has joined us as well and he’s added strength to the team.”