Institute facing 'three cup finals'

Institute vs. Dergview

Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium

Saturday, 3pm

In an alternate universe, Institute are sitting in third place and pushing for promotion back to the top flight of Irish football, having seen out every game they have taken the lead in this season.

So many times this season – 19 in fact, Brian Donaghey has watched his team take the lead, only for games to slip away from them time and time again.

It is an incredible record, which was only added to in the past two games. Last Saturday, ‘Stute led Knockbreda 2-1 at half time, only to lose 3-2, while on Tuesday night, they led 1-0 at H&W Welders thanks to Jack Millar’s early goal, only to lose 3-1.

Now they are perilously close to a relegation playoff game to save their season, and even outright relegation itself with just three games remaining.

“If you take those points and add them to our total at the moment and I think we’re lying in the top three or top four,” Donaghey suggested.

“It’s been a problem. In some cases it’s been individual errors, in others it’s a collective thing, but we have been shooting ourselves in the foot for a long part of the season and Tuesday night was probably another example. We were very well-prepared, took an early lead and nullified most of their threat. They are a very good side but I think our own mistakes were our undoing again. For us to get nothing from the match is a hard one to take, because I think we deserved something from the game.”

Home games against Dergview today and Newington next week are the biggest the club has faced in years, before a trip to Ballinamallard on the final day.

“We still have three opportunities to dig ourselves out of trouble,” Donaghey continued. “I’ve got faith in the group and I just hope they believe in themselves as much as I believe in them. I’m just hoping we get a massive result come Saturday and it will kickstart us again and get us over the line because it has been a difficult and challenging year since Christmas.”

Prime example

Last month’s game against Dergview at the Brandywell was a key example of how ‘Stute’s season has gone, with the home side utterly dominant, only for the game to end 2-2 despite taking the lead on two occasions. Lost points such as those are now proving so costly.

“I could go through nearly every game bar two or three and see that we should have got something from them,” Donaghey said. “We always seem to be in games and always give teams a game. We have taken points off all the top teams, so it means that we are a match for them, but slight apses in concentration and a bit of bad luck has been the story of our season.

Unfortunately, we haven’t been killing teams off. That day against Dergview we should have been out of sight after 70-80 minutes. We thoroughly deserved something from that match and the same could be said about the Welders game the week later when the goalkeeper was the ‘Man of the Match’. He pulled off a wonder save on Tuesday night again which would have made it 2-0 for us five minutes into the second half and if that had gone on, I think we definitely would have taken something from the game.

“These big moments are going against us right now but we have to believe that it’s still in our own hands and that we can get out of trouble.”

Dergview also need the points to get away from relegation trouble, making this today’s game significant for both clubs.

“They will be fighting for their lives as well,” Donaghey acknowledged. “There are four teams down there and it’s a mini-league down there with ourselves, Knockbreda, Newington and Dergview. One will go down automatically; one will go into a play-off and two will be set free. We just have to get points so we’re one of the teams set free. We haven’t had a home game in a month, but we have two home games now against our nearest challengers. We’re running out of games now so we need to start winning quickly and it probably needs to start on Saturday.

“If they take the gap to five points, there is only two to play for and then there’s no margin for error. We can’t feel sorry for ourselves. It’s easy to do that, but I’m so proud of the boys because of their effort on Tuesday. It wasn’t for a lack of effort or intensity; it was just a bit of bad luck and conceding goals at crucial times.”