Getting Nearer!

Its just 8 days away from the biggest match that we have been involved since our dramatic win in the County Antrim Shield last season. But this match is even bigger in our estimation, it's a chance to get to an Irish cup final and the chance to get our name back on the blue riband trophy that is the Irish cup. But that's 8 days away and we got an important league game tomorrow against Dungannon Swifts. Our manager, Spike, has promised to rest one or two of his regulars and we're not going to say what we think they will be. There's definitely one change that's going to made and that is, Shan our keeper. He is going to have a rest tomorrow and reserve keeper Macauley Cairns, is going to get a rare start.

As Spike was at pains to point out this week we only have one keeper that's eligible for the Irish cup and that's Shan, so it makes sense to rest him tomorrow with the semi-final in mind. Tomorrow's match will be our last game at the Showgrounds for a month, until we pull the curtain down on another league season at home to Ards on 26 April. We at 'Sport, like the rest of the Sky Blue faithful will be hoping the Ards game will not be the last game of the season as such. We will be hoping that is an appetiser for the Irish cup final on Saturday 3 May. But we digress, what of tomorrows opponents who haven't won a game since we beat them in the Irish cup 3 weeks ago.

Swifts manager, Darren Murphy, will have his team well pumped up for this one and he will be expecting us to have our minds on next weeks game and will have his players primed to take advantage of any slips. It'll be hard for our players, but if you shirk tackles, you end up getting hurt, so we have to be up for the game, otherwise we will get trampled on. To this end we think we need to start Gavin and Sparky in midfield and their no nonsense approach could be the spark that ignites us. Mark Kelly has to tried in the striking role and Neal Lowry must be due some first team action. We mustn't switch off, if we play with the same concentration that we showed in the cup against the Swifts, we will prevail, so come on Sky Blues!

Day Off!

According to press reports, our manager is going to use the next two games as a trial for players on the fringes of our squad. With opposite number Gary Hamilton already stating his position and he will definitely be  rotating his squad, tomorrows game is not going to be one for the connoisseur. So with that in mind, if you don't have a season ticket or a seat booked for the corporate lunch, our best advice to you, is to take a day off. Definitely out the of United squad are JT and Thommo, with hamstring and groin injuries, so they will be rested. With Steeky McBride fully fit, might Fergie be tempted to pair Marky and Archie in central defence and give the veteran Cookie a rest.

Tony Kane, who missed last week's meek surrender to Crusaders, must be in line for a recall, as must Ally. Tomorrow would be good time to give Mark Kelly 90 mins, to see what he can do, or is Glenn wanting to keep him in reserve for the semi-final of the Irish cup. Cush needs a rest too, he's been battling with an injury since the start of the season, but like the talisman that he is, he just gives his all in every game. Might we save a few pounds by not bringing Captain Jenks across from Scotland, next week at least, if not this one as well. Surely MM deserves to play in next two games, he has been warming the bench so much of late, in fact he has only started in half of his 22 appearances in a Sky Blue jersey.

Its hard to get any enthusiasm for tomorrow's game, what with our manager playing it down and the media concentrating its attention on the battle for the Gibson cup. The only thing that needs to decided is the Mallards or the Point going to finish in 11th position and therefore meet a championship side in a play-off. Come five O'clock tomorrow we'll know our fixtures, but the way its looking now, we will be at home to Dungannon next Saturday and away to the scum on April 12, after the Irish cup semi-final against Queens on April 5. We play the Point and the Mallards on Easter weekend, both away and finish up with a home game to Ards on April 26. We're going to go to bed now and hopefully wake up with new enthusiasm, but somehow we very much doubt it, so come on Sky Blues, lets try to make a game of i

Blunted Hatchets!

United go into their penultimate game pre-split against Crusaders at Seaview tomorrow and have nothing to fear against the hatchet-men, as United have already beaten them twice in the league this season. This will be in fact the fifth meeting between the two sides this season and United deserved to only lose one, the County Antrim Shield semi-final, where we didn't turn-up. The other game we lost was in the league cup and United lost 4-3 after extra-time and were denied a stonewall penalty at the death, by referee Colin Burns. By an ironic twist of fate we have another controversial official taking charge of tomorrow's game, Richard Crangle, but we know from experience we get nothing when playing city teams.

So it'll be up to Glenn and the three baldies to come up with a plan to send Mister Ugly home to his missus with a frown and no points. There could be three or four former United players in the Crues line-up tomorrow, but we are better off without them and anyway they all went of their own free will, we didn't force them out. Spike has hinted at changes, but we at 'Sport would be surprised to see wholesale changes, but with a full panel to pick from, Spike may shake things up a bit. We won't be surprised if Cookie is rested and Marky gets the nod alongside JT and maybe Thommo will get a start at the expense of Alan D. Will Spike unleash his secret weapon, Mark Kelly, on the unsuspecting Crues defence or will he stick with Darboy?

These are questions that only Glenn can answer and we have learnt from experience that its a useless exercise, trying to second guess him. Just when you think you have him figured out, he springs a surprise on you, like he did last Friday night, in omitting Kelly and Sparky from his subs bench. Oh how United could done with Sparky's battling in midfield and Kelly's presence up front, where the Glentoran defenders were hardly troubled. Glenn is still relatively new to football management and we think he was carried away with all the hype about the Glens picking a weak side and he gave a few players the night off and it came back to bite him. We hope he picks his strongest team tomorrow, come on Sky Blues, lets shag those paper Tigers!

Chasers Night!

Friday night is reckoned to be chasers night and United fall into that category tomorrow night when they face Glentoran at the Oval in the Dankse Premiership, kick-off, 19-45. The press has been full of Glens problems today and were you to believe half of it, you would rightly assume that United had only to turn up to be assured of three points. But we know from painful experience, that you cannot believe a word that the Glens management trot out. Every-time that we are due to play them, they have a number players crocked and miracles of miracles, they make a marvellous recovery and are on their team.

Take the latest press release from the Glens publicity machine, John McGuigan, is helping Police with their inquires about drugs and will not be picked. They have three players suspended, namely Addis, Gordon and Garret and we think these three are genuine sidelined players, but Hill, Birnie, Kane and Magee are all injured, we won't be surprised if they all make a recovery and make the Glens starting line-up. Our management team know the Oval outfit and are used to their rumours and won't be fooled with their weeping and wailing. We expect a tough match, for the Glens are fighting for their very existence and we will be prepared for that eventuality.

As regards ourselves, we have only one player who's not available for selection, Marky McCullagh, serving a one game suspension, but we have enough strength in depth to cope with that. We have given up trying to second guess Spike and the three baldies, but expect our defence will pick itself and Darboy and Cush are certain starters. That only remains for our midfield to be selected and one striker and going on past experience it will be, Tony, Alan D, Captain Jenks and Ally. But Spike may surprise us and pick an entirely different midfield, or he may fool us completely and go for a 4,4,2 formation, wouldn't that be something, but in all honesty we think not.

Whatever players our Spike picks, we have to chase this game from the start, no use saying after the event, we could have tried harder, its got to be all systems go from the outset. If we give it our best shot and are found wanting, so be it, we'll have the satisfaction of knowing we tried our eye-strings out. That is the only way we can get the desired result, we got to go on the attack and as 'Jonesy says', they don't like it up them, but we got to do it. There's only three points up for grabs tomorrow night, but a win would leap us into to 5th place at least until 17-00 hrs Saturday and set us up for our visit to the hatchet-men on March 15. Its all to play for, we have the players to do it, so come on Sky Blues, lets shag those wise men from the East!