High-flying Institute on the road again today

Annagh United vs. Institute

Tandragee Park

Today, 3pm

Kevin Deery is looking for a bit more composure from his players in the final third as they prepare to head to Annagh United today.

The ‘Stute manager has few, if any complaints, with his players after a fantastic start to the new season, which has seen them win four of seven league games and shoot up to third place in the NIFL Championship. Of those seven games, ‘Stute arguably only deserved to lose just one, a forgettable day against Newington at the Brandywell, but, that aside, they have delivered in almost all aspects for Deery and his staff.

Defensively, ‘Stute have been exceptional. That disaster against Newington aside, ‘Stute have conceded just three goals in six games, making theirs the best defence in the division, alongside Bangor.

It is at the other end however, where improvements can be made. ‘Stute’s return of just eight goals in seven games makes them the lowest scorers in the division, other than Knockbreda, who are floundering at the foot of the Championship. It is in this area that Deery is focusing his attention on.

“I said to the squad that I don’t think we have a man who can get 25-30 goals this season like a few other teams in the Championship,” he said.

“Mark Mbuli was out last week and he had scored something like 58% of our goals so we needed someone else to step up. That was the message and thankfully Oisin scored a great goal to get us the three points. But I think if we had been calmer and a bit better on the ball, we would have scored more goals, so that’s our focus this week in training.”

A speculative strike from distance from teenager Oisin Devlin was enough to give ‘Stute a first away win of the season at Ballinamallard last week, a third win in five games.

“We did speak about our performances and we felt that for us to go forward as a group we would have to get an away win,” Deery continued.

“We felt that our performances away to Portadown and Bangor probably deserved maximum points and we didn’t get them, so we just concentrated on our performance, and fortunately we played quite well. We were in total control of the game and got a good goal; I would just like us to be more clinical and ruthless and try and make the games a bit easier, but Ballinamallard are a decent team at home, so we were delighted with the three points.”

Deery acknowledged the contribution of Devlin, who made his senior debut last season at just 16 years of age.

“Physically you can see he’s in a really good place,” he stated. “He has big strong legs and he’s a throwback kind of player. He does all the grafting, he does all the hard yards, he runs, he presses, he gets on the front foot, he wins second balls, he wins his duels. He has been great and now he’s stepping up for the team, and it’s all about the team, it’s not about Oisin, or it’s not about Mark Mbuli. It’s someone else’s turn every week, and it was Oisin’s turn this week.”

Honesty

It took ‘Stute 12 league games, late into October last season, to reach the 13-point mark, but they have done that especially quickly this time around. Deery is delighted with his players’ efforts, especially given the fact that they are still a relatively new group.

“We’ve accumulated 13 points and it’s a good turnaround, and they have been excellent since we’ve come in,” he said. “They train really hard and it’s been quality. They have bought in, they don’t miss sessions, and nothing surprises you when you can put the work in and you’re honest and the effort’s there.

“For me, the message to the players is that we can’t be content; we have to challenge ourselves every week. We know what the league is about and we’ve shown that we’re capable of competing with others, so we just want to keep driving it on every week and see where it takes us.”

“We have another tough away game at the weekend and we have to be ready to go again, but I feel that the players are in a good place and they are ready to go.”