Jim Magilton has told his Cliftonville FC players they must show the same fight from a recent Shield victory when they host Portadown this weekend. The manager's call comes with the Reds stuck in a damaging run of five straight Premiership defeats, a sequence that has left them ninth in the league table with 12 points from 11 games.
Magilton pointed to the team's performance in a midweek Shield win as the required standard. He said the application and spirit shown in that match needed to be carried directly into the league fixture against Portadown at Solitude. The club's current form is a stark contrast, having lost every league game since a 3-1 win over Carrick Rangers on September 12.
Recent struggles laid bare
The losing run includes narrow 1-0 reverses against Coleraine and Ballymena United, and a 2-0 loss away to Larne. Their last outing was a 1-0 defeat at Coleraine, where Matthew Shevlin's 13th-minute goal decided the contest. That result leaves Cliftonville 16 points adrift of league leaders Coleraine, with a goal difference of minus one after scoring 12 and conceding 13 this season.
Portadown's own challenges
Portadown, Saturday's visitors, sit 11th in the table and arrive off the back of a goalless draw with Glentoran. Their form has been mixed, with a win over Limavady United but also heavy losses to Bangor and Ballymena United in recent weeks.
Head-to-head advantage
Cliftonville will draw confidence from the most recent meeting between the sides, a 3-1 victory at Solitude on September 5. The Reds have the chance to complete a quickfire league double over their opponents. The match kicks off at 18:00 local time on Saturday, October 17, at Solitude.
With no fresh injury or suspension news available, Magilton is likely to look for a reaction from the group that started the last league game. That side included Morrison in goal, with a defensive line of Samuels, Leppard, McClelland and Bannon. The manager confirmed the squad is largely as expected, with no new major concerns on the injury list. The challenge is clear: stop the rot and start climbing the table. The next fixture is a key home game against a team directly below them in the standings.
