United provide rapid response to cup humiliation

No, not the one which haunts football fans everywhere, even at this relatively early stage of the season – relegation; Ballymena United thankfully have much loftier ambitions this season than merely preserving their Danske Bank Premiership status.

Instead it was ‘response’ that was the word on people’s lips...”we need a big response today”...”it’s all about how we respond...” was the nature of the chatter as people made their way to their seats.

Those fans who responded to what they had witnessed in the Irn Bru Cup debacle against Linfield on Monday night by opting for the warmth and comfort of their armchair and reaching for the remote control missed a gem of a game, played at typically ferocious Premiership pace.

They also missed out on a United comeback which once again illustrated the new-found spirit that Glenn Ferguson and his coaching team has instilled in this panel of players.

It also served to suggest that Monday night’s gubbing could be placed firmly in the category of a one-off, a blip, an aberration.

I would have thought that Ballymena’s performances and results this season would have earned the players a bit of ‘credit’ with fans in the event of things going wrong, which was bound to happen at some stage.

That’s why it was particularly disappointing to hear the level of vitriol aimed at United’s players on the half-time whistle of Monday night’s game – mind you, the glare Alan Davidson aimed at one particularly vociferous critic as he made his way down the tunnel spoke even greater volumes than the verbal abuse that was being meted out in his and his team-mates’ direction.

Enough of the negatives of Monday night, however, because the level of support and the level of noise in the home stand at Saturday’s game was the loudest I’ve heard in some time.

It’s a question often asked, a sort of footballing version of the ‘chicken and egg’ scenario of which comes first – do the supporters need to lift the players with their support or does it require something inspiring to happen from the players on the pitch to lift the supporters?

You could also tell by the reaction of the players at the final whistle on Saturday, and as they emerged from the dressing room, that this wasn’t merely three points against Crusaders – a statistic which, in itself, has been rare enough in recent seasons.

They now need to focus on the tests that lie ahead in a difficult November with league business – where Ballymena are now just two points off second position – taking precedence over a cup final which has already been put firmly on the backburner until the appropriate time.

“What Shield’s that?” was a smiling Ferguson’s mischievous response when the November 27 decider against Linfield was mentioned in Saturday’s post-match press conference.

*Follow Ballymena Times Sports Editor Stephen Alexander on Twitter (@Stephen_Bmena)