CLIFTONVILLE manager Jim Magilton insists it is going to be a long week and there will be no shortcuts as his side try to regroup from defeat to Glenavon when the sides meet again in the sixth round of the Irish Cup.
The Lurgan Blues make the trip to Solitude (3pm kick-off) hoping to make it back-to-back victories over the 2024 Irish Cup winners.
Magilton believes the only way his side can make up for defeat at Mourneview Park is to rectify the performance and ensure they are in the quarter-final draw come the close of play on Saturday afternoon.
“The only way you get out is to put a performance in next week and try and stay in the hat,” Magilton acknowledged.
“It is going to be a long week for them – I tell you that now. There are no shortcuts now. Once you cross that white line, you are responsible for your own performance as an individual and then the collective is you’ve got to be responsible for that.
“The buck stops with the manager. I pick the team. I brought those lads in. That was an horrendous performance."
The Cliftonville manager believe his side rued some glorious opportunities that went a-begging and doesn't feel that they utilised their threat from set-pieces.
“We missed great chances,” recalled Magilton.
“Reece Jordan at the far post and Brian Healy at the start of the second half – we did miss good chances, but we weren’t at the races.
“They were better than us in all departments. Okay, they are fighting for their lives but we’re fighting for our lives. A lot of them are fighting to play in the team and today I thought we were really substandard. We were really poor.
“There was nothing from set-pieces. Even when we had first contact there was nothing. Nobody was on their toes, we didn’t do enough. It was an awful day for us and our supporters should expect more and demand more. I’m really upset about it."
Magilton didn’t feel that Glenavon should have been awarded an early second half penalty after his side were denied one early in the first period, but did not excuse his players' performance.
“If the referee gives that penalty then he has to give the one in the first couple of minutes on Rory Hale. It’s a penalty and he hasn’t given it,” he explained.
“I thought Peter Campbell went down too easy, there was no contact and he gave it. We didn’t lose the game because of that.
“The goalkeeper [Lewis Ridd] makes a great save and then flaps at a cross and it is too easy, everything is too easy. We’re too easy to play against at the minute. It’s too easy to put that jersey on at the minute. You have to earn the right and a lot of them let themselves down today."
Reflecting on his own career, Magilton is adamant he didn’t need to be told when he had performed badly or well in order to provide motivation, something he felt was lacking at the weekend.
“This game is really simple, it is really simple – complicated I suppose by us, but it is very simple. It is too easy to put that shirt on at the moment and not earn that right. We’ve given people lots of opportunities to do that.
“Today was a real eye-opener because I didn’t see that performance coming given we’ve had a really good week.
“That is a lesson and this week has to be a different feel and a different beast when we walk out on Saturday, because our season is on the line and our lives are on the line.
“As a manager and an ex-player, no-one ever had to tell me when I played badly. No-one had to tell me when I played well, no-one had to motivate me. There was a distinct lack of motivation today and I’ve no idea why.
“If I told you that we trained badly or things weren’t good, I’d try and use that as an excuse. No excuse, no excuses for that. That was just not acceptable by any standards.
“Our fans will quite rightly come after us and it’s now showing courage and resilience and standing up."
Magilton was also quick to play down any excuse about the breakdown of the proposed takeover of the club having an impact on the field.
“Everything else that is going on is totally irrelevant, I've never ever used that as an excuse in my past," he reiterated. “Once I crossed the white line I was totally focused on the game, as these lads have been and should be.
“You can tell that I’m upset about it, but the mad thing about this is you get another chance. There is another game around the corner and we’ve got to stand up and be counted now. It’s a big ask next week we’ll see how we go. It’s about characters and leaders."
Cliftonville will now hope to recover their form as they face the Lurgan Blues in the Irish Cup this weekend, with kick-off set for 3pm at Solitude.
