Canning insists there is a bigger picture

By Tommy Nethery

FOR the fifth time this season and the third week running Dergview and Ballinamallard United will lock horns at Darragh Park tomorrow.

Thus far the bragging rights belong to the Derg men who made it three victories on the trot against their rivals by winning Saturday’s North West Senior Cup Final 3-1.

In fact, Dergview have won four and drawn one of the last five meetings of the teams and the last time the Mallards won a competitive game against their north Tyrone neighbours was December 2019 when they won the North West Senior Cup final on penalties at Ferney Park.

Current Derg boss Tommy Canning has yet to taste derby defeat, and while he knows it will happen sooner or later, he doesn’t want it to be this weekend. The Strabane man insists there is a bigger picture for him and his players.

“It goes without saying but both teams are sick looking at each other and it actually makes it more difficult to prepare for,” he said.

“From our point of view it’s an opportunity to get three points, keep a run going and try and reel in fifth place which at this stage happens to be Ballinamallard.”

Ballinamallard go into the game on the back of a wretched run of form.

Before the back-to-back defeats to Dergview, Harry McConkey’s team lost key games against Loughgall United, HW Welders and Institute and those defeats had realistically put paid to their promotion hopes.

McConkey, who missed Saturday’s cup final because of Covid, insisted that his players needed to restore some pride and confidence in their final five games.

“There is a run in here and we want to get as many points as we can and finish with a bit of pride and boost morale because that is what we are playing for now,” he said.