Dungannon Swifts manager Rodney McAree insists his boys cannot afford to feel sorry for themselves following their gut-churning defeat by Glentoran last weekend.
Just when it looked the battling Swifts had done enough to go back down the M1 with a hard-earned point, defender Danny Amos stepped up to smash home a last-minute wonder goal.
It was a heartbreaker for McAree and his team, but he says they must take the defeat ‘on the chin’ and be in the right frame of mind for what will be another big challenge against Carrick Rangers at Stangmore Park on Saturday.
“The defeat last week was frustrating; it was hurtful and it left a lot of disappointment in the dressing among the players,” said McAree.
“But we can’t afford to dwell on it, we had to take it on the chin and move on.
“We were so close to leaving with a point and a clean sheet. Yes, we were gutted, but we must take the positives from the performance.”
With Carrick fighting for their lives at the foot of the Sports Direct Premiership table, McAree insists it will be another big challenge.
He went on: “It’s going to be extremely tough. Carrick are a big, physical side. They are in the process of trying to climb away from the foot of the table.
“Stephen (Baxter) has done a good job since being appointed. He made a number of good signings in the January transfer window.
“He has brought a lot of boys up from the League of Ireland, they come with experience and quality, so we must be at our very best if we are to get a positive result.”
McAree believes the positives of his team’s display at the BetMcLean Oval last time out can stand them in good stead.
“I think it spoke volumes for us as a group,” he added.
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“We were so disappointed by conceding a last-minute winner at the Oval, I think it shows where we have come.
“Although I was disappointed with our first-half performance, I thought we showed commitment and desire. I thought we showed all the attributes of the dirty side of the game.
“They (Glentoran) created two or three half chances, but we were happy to get in a half-time with the score still level. It gave us the chance to regroup and correct a few things.
“I thought we were exceptional after the restart. Yes, we could have been better on the ball, but we showed more belief in each other in the second-half.
“We restricted Glentoran to very little; I don’t think Decky (Dunne) had a save to make. Unfortunately, in the closing minutes, the ball landed on the boot of Danial Amos and, as soon as he hit it, everyone knew where it would end up.
“At that stage of the game, it was difficult for us to respond, there was simply no time.
“We probably conceded to many free-kicks and invited pressure on to ourselves.
“Glentoran are physically a strong side, we gave them the opportunity to put us under pressure. But we must learn from that and try to concede less free-kicks.
“In saying that, our two central defenders, Danny Wallace and Dean Curry, were exceptional. They dealt with everything that came at them, they put their head on everything and cleared every ball.
“We are not the biggest team in the world, but we know we have enough to deal with set-pieces and any dangerous balls that come into the box.
“They certainly didn’t deserve to be on a losing side, especially in such a cruel manner.”