Cliftonville get their season underway with a home game against Glenavon on Saturday afternoon, and midfielder Chris Gallagher has emphasised the importance of the Reds winning the games which they are expected to this campaign.
In the Premiership last season there was a clear gap between the top six sides and the bottom six, and when looking at the season ahead, it is presumed that the games between the top sides take on the most importance.
However, Gallagher said that he feels it’s the games against the bottom six sides which are crucial, when the league table is totted up at the end of the season.
“The whole league is difficult; there are no easy games no matter who you are playing,” he said.
“Sometimes those games are taken for granted, and people think that it’s an easy three points, but that’s not the case.”
Saturday’s opponents Glenavon will be no pushovers for the Reds, as they showed last weekend. They held Glentoran for 98 minutes, before Jay Donnelly struck the only goal at the death.
Likewise, Dungannon Swifts stunned Larne on Monday night, by coming back from 4-1 down to snatch a point away to the champions.
“I think games against the top six almost take care of themselves,” Gallagher continued.
“The majority of the time the occasion is bigger, and the atmosphere is better - but the games against the bottom six are the ones that you have to win.”
The Reds have had to be patient and wait a week longer than anticipated, but Gallagher wasn’t complaining about getting more time to prepare.
“It’s an extra week to work on what we want to do, and an extra week of preparation,” he said.
“Obviously you want to get started as quickly as you can, but some things are out of your control, and you can’t. So, we have to look at it in a positive way and use it to get extra preparation.”
Cliftonville will be looking to put the disappointments of last season behind them, as they came down the stretch as genuine title contenders but ended up missing out not only on the league, but on European football too.
“It was a disappointing end to the season,” Gallagher conceded.
“With how the season sort of withered out in the end was most disappointing. Come the turn of Christmas, we were in a very good position, even up until February, but then a couple of bad results put a stop to our momentum, and we just couldn’t get going again.
“It was frustrating, because we were in a bit of rut and couldn’t get out of it. I can’t put my finger on why it happened, but hopefully if we can get ourselves in a good position this season, we will be able to stay there.”
Saturday will also see Jim Magilton begin his era as Cliftonville manager, and Gallagher is hoping that the hard yards that the team put in during pre season will pay off.
“Any time a new manager comes in, they will have their own ideas, but we have been working on things for the past six or seven weeks and hopefully come the start of the season, they’ll show.
“I think we have been building steadily; fitness is coming on with each game that we have had in pre season and the performances have improved.”
