CLIFTONVILLE boss Jim Magilton is hoping that his side can sign off from Solitude with a victory that would be recognition for their fantastic backing all season.

The Reds host Glentoran on Saturday (3pm kick-off) on their last home outing of the campaign and they will hope to return to claim their first post-split victory.

Magilton isn’t expecting an easy afternoon, however, against a wounded Glens side that are also without a win since the split and conceded an injury-time winner to Larne at home on Tuesday evening.

“We want to sign off with a win, 100 percent of course we do,” he reiterated.

“It will be a recognition of the fantastic home support this year. We want to go out there, play well and win the game. Glentoran will be hurting after their late defeat on Tuesday night and conceding a late goal.

“I know Declan [Devine] very well and I know that Declan will come ready for us and look forward to it. They are a talented bunch of players and we are going to have to play well because on their day they are as good as anything in the league.”

As disappointed as Magilton was to lose Tuesday evening’s derby away to Crusaders, he was pleased with the reaction from their heavy defeat to Larne and is hoping to build on that ahead of this weekend.

“Disappointed, I hate losing,” he admitted.

“We needed a reaction from Saturday, I think we got one.

“I thought we started the game really brightly, created some really good opportunities. When you don’t take them, especially with the quality they have...

“Set-pieces is one of their strengths and we conceded a really poor goal.

“I thought we regrouped and some of our play was really good. We broke really quickly and on another night Ben and Joe score a few goals.

“It was the reset button in the second half. We got on the front foot and Joe scored a good goal.

“It was a better performance, not a great result but then we’ve got to go again on Saturday against Glentoran and hopefully bring that sort of vibrancy and fluidity into our game.”

The Reds' boss was also pleased that his players came through unscathed at Seaview but admitted that there are some injury concerns ahead of the Irish Cup final in a few weeks’ time.

“It is real ‘Brucey Bonus’ for us,” Magilton acknowledged.

“We’ve seven or eight lads who we are trying to get ready for a couple of weeks.

“Some of the lads like Ronan Doherty and Rory Hale have played so many games for us. I wouldn’t say there is a desperation to wrap them up in cotton wool, but the demands of the league is such that you have to present yourself.

“It’s a huge benefit for the younger lads in our squad. We’ve had lads that have played through injuries. We played Jonny [Addis] on Saturday and we probably shouldn’t have, we should have rested him.  We’d no other choice tonight than to rest him and others.

“We’re trying to nurse a few lads who would probably be playing in that team, but it is what it is. Every time you’re playing for this club, you’ve got to stand up and present yourself.”

Magilton also insisted that there was no dramatic backlash from their weekend humiliation at Larne and praised his players for their contribution this campaign.

“I’ve lost a couple games like that,” he recalled.

“In Goodison (Everton) we lost seven, been to Manchester United and lost six and been at Portman Road when Liverpool scored seven. As a group of players, you have to be honest.

“Sometimes it comes down to the quality of the opposition. You have to recognise that quality of the opposition on Saturday.

“It is hard enough with eleven and when we went down to 10, they punished us and we got a beating. The argument is then that you never kick a dog when it’s down, you get up.

“It is really important that they recognise that. This group of players have been outstanding this year. We have certainly had dips, but I think the realisation of qualifying for Europe and getting into an Irish Cup final has hit home for a lot of them.

“Saturday was a wakeup call. Tonight, was definitely a better all-round performance, albeit we conceded poor goals. Again, Saturday is about building on tonight.”