Bet McLean League Cup final
WITH just 10 days to go until the Bet McLean League Cup final between Linfield and Coleraine, the anticipation continues to build ahead of a game expected to be played out in front of a large crowd at Windsor Park.
Last season Cliftonville won the trophy, defeating Coleraine 4-3 after extra-time in front of 11,000 spectators, and this year’s crowd is expected to top that, with just under 9,000 tickets already sold.
Speaking the press conference for the March 12 final, both managers said they’re excited for what promises to be a big occasion.
“I would imagine that we’ll have a big support, and we look forward to that, because this is a cup that, having been at the final last year in the stands, we wanted to push on in this season,” said Linfield boss David Healy.
"Credit to NIFL (Northern Ireland Football League) because they have worked hard to make it a showpiece event. When we played in the final against Ballymena in 2019, it probably wasn’t as big. So, it’s about understanding the magnitude of the game.”
Linfield defeated Coleraine 2-0 in the Danske Bank Premiership last Saturday, but Healy believes that result will have no bearing on the final.
“Cup finals are sometimes dictated by emotion,” he said.
“People react differently when it’s a cup final, compared to when it’s just a league game. Finals are dictated by players performances, but sometimes they can overstep the mark, or referees can make a poor decision.
“So we hope on the day that players keep calm and officials make good calls. I’m a big advocate of the standard of the league improving, and we want people talking about the quality and the standard of the Irish League and how good of a standard the final was.”
On the opposite side, Coleraine are no strangers to being in the League Cup final, as they won the cup in 2020, and despite falling to Cliftonville in last year’s final, and manager Oran Kearney enjoyed the occasion and is glad to be back in the decider this year.
“I think it’ll be a brilliant spectacle,” he said.
“Barring the result last year, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was everything you wanted it to be; there was a real buzz about it, there was a brilliant crowd, and it felt so different to any league game you had ever been a part of.”
In the league this season, Coleraine have found Linfield a tough nut to crack, with two 0-0 draws, before last Saturday’s defeat, and whilst Kearney praised the south Belfast side, he says his side need to play the game, not the occasion.
“They’ve got a very good manager, and a really good squad,” he said.
“So, we have to go out and hit a high level of performance next week. The occasion is for the fans, and for TV; our job is to go and perform on the day, because if we don’t, we know what Linfield are like on their day.”
