Control panel

Jim Magilton said Cliftonville’s players delivered on their pre-match ambition to exert control over yesterday’s Sports Direct Premiership encounter with Loughgall.

Having been frustrated on more than one occasion this term by opponents dropping deep behind the ball, the Reds got into their groove early and went close through both Rory Hale and Taylor Steven before a 33rd minute foul on Micheal Glynn allowed Joe Gormley to open the scoring from the penalty spot.

Two eye-catching finishes from Gormley in the second-half saw the striker seal the 17th hat-trick of his Cliftonville career before 15-year-old substitute Coran Madden set Hale up for the final goal of the game.

“The whole theme was about controlling possession of the ball and controlling the tempo and flow of the game,” explained Magilton.

“I thought we did that and then we capitalised with some really good play.

“It was really important that we won the game and the standard and levels of our performance was good.

“It was a really good day at the office bouncing back from last week’s disappointment. We talk about standards a lot, regardless of the result, and we slipped below them last week, so I was delighted with how we approached the game.

“Our attitude was spot on from the first whistle, we were pretty dominant.”

As well as hailing Gormley’s latest heroics – “some of his finishes were fantastic” – Magilton was also delighted to welcome Odhran Casey back to action for the first time since May’s Irish Cup Final, and had words of praise for fellow substitute Madden.

“It’s important to try and get minutes for Casey,” he added.

“He’s a really good player and we’re delighted to get him back on the pitch.

“Madden’s another one that’s caught the eye and we’ve always really liked him. He should be delighted with his debut.”