Jim Magilton has his Cliftonville team perfectly primed for the St Stephen’s Day derby against Crusaders.
The Reds go into the festive fixtures after beating Ballymena United 2-0 at Solitude on Saturday
Odhran Casey opened the scoring on the half hour mark before Ronan Hale made sure of the points with aprecision finish in the 73rd minute.
Jim Ervin’s Sky Blues were once again shot-shy in front of goal and failed to score for the seventh Sports Direct Premiership game in a row, adding to their relegation concerns at the foot of the table.
The Reds remain in third place in the division, four points behind league leaders Linfield, who also have agame in hand.
Magilton’s team is now unbeaten in seven games and the Cliftonville boss revealed his delight at going into the derby off the back of a win while still wanting more from his players.
“You want to go into it after winning, you don’t want to go into them with no momentum”, said the former international midfielder.
“We have momentum and real qualityso we’re really looking forward to the game.
“I thought we handled the game today well, at times. We got a little bit sloppy and kind of stuttered a wee bit at times but I thought we moved the ball pretty well in terrible conditions.
“We knew Ballymena would come and be very difficult to break down, and they were.
“We created some really good opportunities, probably our final ball wasn’t the best today but certainly we’re delighted with the result.
“It’s a big game on Tuesday, it’s a big fixture with good memories for us this season.
“Crusaders have so many good players so we know it’s going to be a difficult game but we have to approach it in a positive frame of mind, and we are in a positive frame of mind.”
The St Stephen’s Day derby in North Belfast is a first for Magilton as manager having spent most of his career as a player and manager in England.
He reveals he has tasted the fixture previously as a spectator and insists he is relishing the prospect of meeting Crusaders for the third time this season, with two wins already under his belt.
“I watched Crusaders v Cliftonville at Seaview a few years back, and it’s a buzz, a great feeling.
“The crowd is bigger, it’s the season of goodwill and there is added excitement. People who don’t normally go to games go to the Boxing Day games and my phone has not stopped with people looking for tickets.
“Believe it or not, I’m delighted to be back working on Boxing Day.
“I have enjoyed many Christmases since I stopped working at the coal face but I’ve missed the buzz of preparing for games on Boxing Day.
“I’m telling the players to embrace it and love it, because you miss it when you’re not involved.”
Meanwhile, Dundalk manager Stephen O’Donnell watched the Reds beat Ballymena today with a view to makinga bid for Cliftonville’s left-sided player Stephen Mallon.
Mallon (24), who made way for Sean Stewart in the second half, is out of contract at Solitude in the summer. His friend and team mate Chris Gallagher will leave Cliftonville for Larne in the summer unless a deal can be done next month, but talks are at an impasse.
Magilton is optimistic about securing goalkeeper David Odumosu for the remainder of the season.
The 22-year-old was signed on loan from St Pat’s Athletic in the summer and the player admitted recently he was unsure of his future, but early indications are that he will stay until next summer.