Lisbellaw United 3 Dergview Reserves 0

Kyle McCleery is the new player manager of Lisbellaw after Andy Reilly ended his three and a half year spell as manager following the teams Mulhern Cup victory over Dergview Reserves. Reilly stood down on Saturday evening with club captain McCleery stepping up to take the reins until the end of the season.
“On Saturday we had a decent performance and a decent result, but Andy had his mind made up before that game that he had had enough and he thought a new manager coming in would be the best thing for the club,” said McCleery. “Our chairman Ian Hood sent me a message on Saturday night to let me know, and asked me if I would consider stepping in as player manager to the end of the season. I thought about it overnight and spoke to a few people, and said I would take it. Initially in my head it is only going to be until the end of the season, and maybe then we can get a completely new fresh face from outside the club who can wipe the slate clean. We will cross that bridge when we come to it, but I am more than happy now to come in until the end of the season.”
Kyle is confident that he can cope with the dual demands of playing and managing. “It has probably come a bit earlier than I wanted but I am looking forward to the challenge,” he said. “I know Michael Kerr is doing a good job of it at Rangers and Seamus Fanthorpe was able to do it at Strathroy. It will throw up a few more challenges and it will be a bit of an undertaking to do it but I’m going to make the most of it and hopefully do as well as we possibly can. It’s going to be difficult but I’m really looking forward to it. Over the last six or seven years I have been heavily involved with youth coaching and I’ve enjoyed doing that. Going into senior management is something I have thought about doing and I always felt I would have loved to do, so from that point of view I’m delighted and more than happy to step in.”
McCleery’s first game in charge will come this Saturday against Beragh Swifts, and Kyle is looking forward to the occasion. “It is a difficult enough first game as it’s always a tough match down there but we will be as prepared as we possibly can,” he said. “We had a good result and a good performance last week and that gives me something to build on. This season hasn’t been a fantastic season and we are languishing in mid-table but we will aim to kick on and finish as high up as we can. Saturday will be a test for us but if I could get off to a winning start it would be fantastic.”
The victory over Dergview Reserves in what would prove to be Reilly’s last game in charge was a routine victory for the division one side. Ryan Lindsay scored the first after thirty minutes when he volleyed a partially cleared corner into the bottom corner, and Ryan O’Keefe added a second before half time when he converted Paul Baron’s cross at the back post. 
A clash between a Beragh player and Lisbellaw manager Reilly saw both dismissed midway through the second half, and with a man less on the pitch O’Keefe added a third to complete the win.