BY MATTHEW WILSON
WHITESTRAND United manager Brian Dunleavy hopes that his side can bring some forward momentum into the Christmas break as they prepare for a meeting with Drumoghill this Sunday.
Whitestrand were in action last weekend when they came out on top against Deele Harps in a 5-1 win on home soil.
Deele Harps have enjoyed a good start to the season, winning five out of their six matches prior to Sunday’s defeat so to beat them in this manner will be a confidence boost to Whitestrand.
With a couple of players still sidelined with injuries and niggles, Dunleavy was pleased with the victory over the Martin Duffy Park residents last time out.
“It was a good win. We took our chances early on to get a couple of goals and that set us up well. Overall, everybody on the team played well.
“Some days you’ve few boys off it but everyone had a decent game and our boys up top did the damage. We took the chances and that’s football.
“I’d be happy with the all-round performance, we’re still missing a good few lads. Getting there yesterday when we’re still not at full pelt, I was happy.”
The Whitestrand outfit have enjoyed a solid start to the Division 2 campaign, sitting in fourth place in the table after their first seven matches.
Dunleavy’s side missed out on promotion from the league last season, losing out to Cappry Rovers in a relegation/promotion play-off.
They’ll be seeking to go one better this year and secure a spot in Division 1. Despite being pleased with the way his men have commenced the campaign, the Whitestrand boss discussed that there is a lot of fierce competition in the league this term.
“I’m pleased with it. Personally, I don’t care if I’m sitting top at Christmas, you just want to leave yourself in the mix where you can look at it and feel that you’re in a good spot with the second half of the season to go.
“It’s a really tough league this year, so many teams are so even. We haven’t played Cranford or Drumoghill yet and there’s no easy games. A lot of teams will be taking points off each other, it’s a long season but overall I’m happy.”
The McGarvey Park residents have lost the services of a couple of players from last term, but they’ve added a few individuals that have contributed to the side’s positive start.
Dunleavy has integrated some youthful individuals into the group this term in the form of Kai Corcoran and Jack Dunleavy and has also acquired the services of former Donegal player Caolan Ward who has had a big impact on the side.
“Kai Corcoran is really lethal up front, he’s a natural goalscorer. My young fella, Jack (Dunleavy), he’s also in and he’s a solid player as well.
“A big plus is we got Caolan Ward in, I got him at the start of the season. He stepped away from the Donegal panel so I gave him a call and he said he was going back into soccer again.
“So I got him and he’s been a big coup for us. He’s been a big plus for us, a fit, athletic man with a good attitude around the place. It’s everything that you’d want.”
Whitestrand United are back in action this Sunday when they travel to The Moss to face league leaders Drumoghill.
Jonathan Wilson’s outfit have won six out of their eight league matches to date and will provide a stern test for the McGarvey Park residents this weekend.
Dunleavy is aware that his side will have to be on their game to prevail against Drumoghill but he expressed that these are the sort of matches that he looks forward to.
“You’re looking forward to those games, we’re going away from home and going to give it our all and see what happens on the day.
“They’re going well but we’re not worried about anyone. We’ll play our game and if it works on the day then that’s great. I enjoy those games.
“When you’re playing teams at the top then everybody is switched on. They know that they have to be at it so I look forward to these games. That’s why you want to be in these positions, to test yourself and see how you do.”
Following last Sunday’s superb win over Deele Harps, Whitestrand United will be aiming to keep their foot on the throttle and secure another result this weekend to maintain their momentum.
With the Christmas break fast approaching, the Whitestrand United boss insists that they want to finish 2025 positively in order to leave themselves in a competitive position at the turn of the year.
“That’s the plan. We just want to finish strong before the break and leave ourselves in a position where we have all to play for in the new year.
“At the start of the season that’s what I said. I don’t want to be top at Christmas, there’s no trophies handed out then. You just want to leave yourself in a good position that you can build on in the second half of the season.
“So far it’s working out that way so lets hope we can keep that going.”
