Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
BLUES ARE IN DENIALL
Quinn says Linfield are paying no attention to claims the title is theirs to lose
LINFIELD defender Niall Quinn is bracing himself for a frantic race to the finishing line in the Premiership.
The Big Two giants, who lie six points clear of Ballymena United and nine above Crusaders, are odds on to lift the Gibson Cup in April.
But Quinn is taking nothing for granted against David Jeffrey’s Sky Blues, who boast a crucial game in hand on the leaders.
He also reckons suggestions the Crues are too far off the pace to retain the title are little more than mind games with 11 games to play.
“I’m sure Crusaders are going to play themselves down as much as possible, but I’m not buying that at all,” said Quinn.
“You can never write them off. Not at this stage of the season and especially when we still have to play them after the split.
“We may be in pole position at the moment, but we’re not writing off anyone because Crusaders are capable of winning all of their remaining league games.
“The same goes for Ballymena. People keep thinking they are going to drop points, but they keep going. They’re still there.”
Linfield approach today’s clash with Coleraine on the back of last week’s dramatic 2-1 Irish Cup defeat to Crusaders at Windsor Park.
It was the Blues’ first loss since suffering a 2-1 reverse at Ballymena in the league on December 1.
“There wasn’t a lot in the tie and over the 90 minutes we had the better chances, but in added time Crusaders were ruthless and they were probably deserved winners,” said Quinn. “At a club like Linfield it’s all about how you respond and the boys are champing at the bit to get going again.”
Healy won’t need reminding that the Blues only home league defeat of the season came against today’s opponents back in November.
Two own goals from Matthew Clarke and Kirk Millar helped the Bannsiders, who beat Dungannon Swifts 2-0 midweek, secure a 2-1 win.
“We probably owe them one because that day they played us off the park,” said Quinn. “It was an unfortunate day for us and it will be in the back of our minds.”
Coleraine, who recruited heavily in the January transfer window, are creeping back into form after a run of just one defeat in their last 10 game in all competitions.
Quinn said: “They won midweek and they’ve brought in a lot of players in and a lot of talented players, so they’ve a big squad to choose from, but we can only worry about ourselves and our own game.”