KEEP CALM & CARRY ON

Healy won’t be waving white flags after just one defeat

LINFIELD boss David Healy admits his boys cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves after crashing to their first defeat in six games at the Ballymena Showgrounds in midweek.

The title holders lost valuable ground at the top of the table after defender Conor Keeley netted a second half double for David Jeffrey’s Sky Blues.

Although they bossed the game for large spells, the Blues had only a spot kick conversion from Andy Waterworth to show for their efforts.

Healy’s team – still without ace marksman

Shayne Lavery, who is on international duty – are back on the road again tonight, facing another potential banana skin outing against Matty Tipton’s erratic Portadown at Shamrock Park.

“Portadown have nothing to lose, it’s traditionally been tough games down there,” admitted the former Northern Ireland international striker. “We’ll need a better performance and a much more positive result – we need to go and find a way to win it.

“It was disappointing to leave Ballymena pointless in midweek. The game was there for us, they were points that got away from us. Trying to win it possibly cost us the game.

“In hindsight, coming away from the Showgrounds with a point may not have been the worst result, but we contrived to make sure that didn’t happen with some sloppy defending and conceding poor goals.

“I was disappointed, the players were disappointed, so we had to address that.

We need to do better when we play Portadown.”

With an everygrowing injury list; marksman Lavery

(left) with the national squad, and now Joel Cooper suspended, Healy is not one for making excuses.

“We have quite a few injury issues at the minute,” he added. “There is no point complaining, you get on with it.

“I have come out recently and, I know other managers have also complained about the chaotic scheduled these players are facing, but no one seems to listen.

“We now have Joel missing after his dismissal at Ballymena. I didn’t think it was warranted, but that’s for someone else to judge.

“Obviously, we are still missing Shayne. It was great he was called up to the international side but we were probably a wee bit light of forward options on the bench at Ballymena.”