BANGOR V GLENAVON, A LOOK AHEAD

On Saturday 11^th April 2026 Glenavon faces Bangor at Clandeboye Park in its next Sports Direct Premiership fixture.

The Seasiders have had an excellent first season back in the top division. They have achieved ten wins and seven draws in their 34 matches. That includes impressive victories against Cliftonville (3-1), Dungannon Swifts (2-1 and 1-0), Portadown (4-1) and Coleraine (2-1). Bangor’s squad includes former Mourneview favourites Gareth Deane, Robbie Garrett, Mark Haughey, Harry Lynch, Tiernan Mulvenna and Jack O’Mahony.

Michael O’Connor expects the trip to North Down to be difficult. “Bangor have had a great season,” he said. “They probably have the lowest budget in the Premiership, yet they are effectively safe with three games to play. They can go out on Saturday, relax, and express themselves. It will be a hard match. There are no easy games in this league.”

Despite losing top scorer Ben Arthurs to injury in March, the Seasiders have taken four points from recent away trips to Dungannon Swifts (1-0) and Crusaders (1-1). “Those were excellent results,” added Michael. “They had been on a bad run from January but seem to have turned things around. We cannot afford to take them for granted.”

Nonetheless, on its last trip to the County Down holiday resort, Glenavon won 3-1. “That was a very professional performance,” the Belfast man recalled. “We were in control for most of the game. We created a lot of chances and played with confidence. Conor Falls scored twice and Barney got the other one. Your mentality has to change away from home. You need to be tighter, more compact. What you do out of possession is really important. That part of our game was excellent that afternoon.”

O’Connor was equally delighted with his players’ display in Tuesday night’s 1-1 draw with Ballymena United at the Showgrounds. “We were the better team for long periods,” he reflected. “But they were really dangerous on the counter. Success Edogun, their big striker, caused us a lot of problems. Yet they changed shape midway through the first half. When the opposition alters formation, it shows that you are doing well.”

Michael felt that both Paddy Burns responded well after making the error which led to Edogun’s goal. “Paddy made a mistake. He held his hands up. It was one of those things,” he said. “But he bounced back really well. He is a strong-minded lad with a great mentality. If he gets it wrong, he forgets about it and moves on quickly. Both he and Barney were excellent. Paddy got a whack on the ankle against Portadown. It was a nasty gash. It swelled up and left a bad bruise. When I phoned him on Tuesday morning to ask him how he felt, he told me that he was fit to play. That is the kind of commitment we need at this stage of the season.”

The Glenavon boss was also pleased with the contributions of left back Oran O’Kane and midfielder Kris Lowe. It was the former’s first start since December and the latter’s first appearance in the eleven since September. “Both lads did really well,” he said. “Kris played two or three different roles and was excellent in all of them. Oran was also super. We knew that they would tire after 65 minutes so we made changes. But both are now firmly in contention for regular places. They have given me a selection headache ahead of Saturday.”

Nevertheless, Harry Murphy and Peter Campbell may be back in harness against Bangor. The Richhill man has only played 45 minutes football in the last two games. “I thought Peter was the best player on the pitch during the second half of the Portadown match,” O’Connor continued. “Obviously, he scored the crucial equaliser. But he is a massively important player for us. Everyone recognises his ability. Not having him at Ballymena was a big blow but, as I have said, others stepped up to the mark. All of the players are working very hard in training and those who are not in the team are trying to show me that they deserve a chance. We are in a good place at the moment in terms of quality and options.”

Sean Carlin was left out in midweek as a precaution. “Sean had an operation in December and has had a heavy workload recently,” said the Belfast man. “I didn’t think it was wise to play him three times in a week. John Mountney came in and was excellent. Sean has also had some minor groin issues. He is an important player. We need to manage him carefully.”

O’Connor feels that is important, if at all possible, for Glenavon to hold onto 11^th place in the Sports Direct Premiership table ahead of Crusaders’ visit to Mourneview Park on Saturday week. “That would be massive,” he added. “At this stage of the season three points for us and no points for them, or vice versa, represents a huge swing. The ideal situation would be for us to win our next two games, secure 11^th position and rest some players against Carrick Rangers in preparation for the promotion / relegation Play-off matches. But, this week, our entire focus is on Bangor. We need to win and we will be going all out to do that.”

The Blues’ boss reports no new injuries or suspensions ahead of the trip to Clandeboye Park.

Other Glenavon teams in action:

(Free Admission to all games)

• Monday 13^th April 2026 – Linfield Swifts v Glenavon Reserves, Midgley Park, 1945 k.o.
• Friday 10^th April 2026 – Glenavon U-18s v Ballinamallard U-18s, Banbridge High School, 2015 k.o.
• Saturday 11^th April 2026 – Loughgall U-16s v Glenavon U-16s, Lakeview Park, 1145 k.o.