3 weeks ago
Ballymena United leader Jim Ervin bemoaned nan determination not to grant his broadside a "stonewall penalty" successful their first limb Irish Premiership promotion/relegation conclusion against Institute.
Danny Lafferty’s spectacular onslaught proved nan quality betwixt nan sides successful a tense crippled astatine nan Brandywell.
But Ervin was incensed that Ballymena had a punishment entreaty for handball waved distant aft Sean Brown’s debased transverse was diverted distant by Caoimhin Porter.
"I person watched it backmost a number of times and really does nan linesman not springiness it?" he said.
"This is simply a large game, and you expect nan officials to get nan large decisions correct and they didn't there.
"That's not nan logic we mislaid nan game, but it surely had a large effect connected it."
Ervin was pleased pinch nan commencement that his broadside made to nan game, but expressed his disappointment pinch their capacity aft that, peculiarly successful nan extremity they conceded, arsenic Michael Harris carried nan shot a agelong region earlier Jamie Dunne teed up Lafferty.
"It was very cagey, some teams were very nervy," he admitted.
"The first 20 minutes we put them nether unit and past aft that they grew into it.
"It was a decent first half and you were hoping for a spot much successful nan 2nd half, but our boys didn't travel retired of nan blocks, and they scored a awesome goal."
Ervin continued: "There is disappointment connected our end, nan feline has tally nan magnitude of nan pitch, and nary 1 has taken 1 for nan squad and taken him retired of nan game."
Despite nan defeat, Ervin is assured that his broadside tin move nan consequence astir and support their Premiership position by winning nan 2nd limb astatine home.
"It is half-time, we're astatine location connected Friday and we spell again successful beforehand of a large crowd. It is up to america to travel retired and effort get thing from it.
"We request to beryllium clinical, we didn't trial nan goalkeeper connected galore occasions, truthful we person a monolithic 90 minutes up of us."
Institute leader Kevin Deery was pleased to travel distant pinch a slender lead but is hoping for an improved attacking capacity astatine nan Ballymena Showgrounds connected Friday.
"We played immoderate bully shot and thankfully Danny [Lafferty] scored a wonderment extremity worthy of winning immoderate game," he said.
"Moving guardant we would for illustration to play better, we haven't deed nan heights we person shown but it's half-time.
"It was a crippled afloat of nerves, we were anxious, and we are a young group, and we person to spell to a really reliable spot and do it each complete again.
"We request to enforce ourselves connected nan game, play connected nan beforehand ft and people again. We person to quiet nan vessel again."
