Ballinamallard finished fourth in the NIFL Championship after a last-minute goal from Reece Byrne earned them a draw at H&W Welders.

Defeat on the final day would have meant Welders securing a top-four finish at the Mallards’ expense, but Byrne’s goal from close range and Ronan McKinley’s earlier strike helped the Ducks claw themselves back from a two-goal deficit as they ended a frustrating season on a positive note.

At the turn of the year promotion was a realistic target for the Mallards, but their challenge faded when they managed only one win from a spell of ten league games from mid-January.

A belated revival came too late to salvage any hopes of promotion, but Manager Harry McConkey is looking to take the positives from a disappointing campaign.

“Overall, we can come away knowing that since the split the players have shown a great attitude and even when we knew it was mathematically impossible, they have shown a great hunger and desire to work hard and give their best, and that is all I can ask,” he said.

“We finished fourth and I think we were well worth that. Loughgall have been a very good side this season and they pipped us to third, but I do believe in our performances against Annagh and Newry, and I have had both their managers say to me, that we were probably the stiffest opposition they have had all season.

“We can take the positives out of that.

“We know we are doing things right in terms of our preparation and our training and the way we want to play, but we have let ourselves down through individual errors.”

The Manager also pointed the finger at their defensive record, and he admitted that they were always going to struggle to compete with the best teams in the league when they had conceded 24 goals more than the league winners.

“When you look at our goals against, that is the area that has left us where we are,” he conceded.

“Saturday typified our season, where we have not been able to protect our goal well enough. That does not come just from our defence.

“We haven’t helped ourselves at the back at times, but it has to start at the front, and in the modern game you have to work so hard out of possession all over the park.”

Defensive problems

On Saturday Ballinamallard’s defensive problems were once again evident as they conceded twice in the first 27 minutes, but they hit back with a much improved second-half performance.

“Their two goals we should have defended better,” admitted McConkey. “We were on the attack and we failed to hold the ball up, and as has happened so often this season, the counter has killed us, and we got exposed.

“In the second half we had real energy and pinned them in, and had waves of attacks, and the only disappointing thing was that we didn’t win the game in the end.

“Technically-gifted teenagers Ronan McKinley, Reece Byrne and Darragh Byrne were a joy to watch and caused Welders’ midfield and defence problems all day, and Duwayne McManus seemed to relish the challenge, orchestrating the play beside Ronan.

“Overall, we finished out on a really good performance in the second half.”

With the season now over, attention turns to preparations for the next season.

McConkey is keen to get everything confirmed with the club before assembling a squad together that can challenge for a Premier League spot in 2023.

“At the end of every year the club has to speak to the Manager, and that has to be done urgently,” he said.

“One thing I have never done in football is to take my position for granted and the club will have to speak to me in the coming days or weeks with regards to what is happening, going forward.

‘Marketplace’

“Once that is confirmed, then you immediately look to see what you can hold on to and see where you are short, and then make a very strong effort in the marketplace to try to fill those gaps with players that can improve what you have.

“There is much work to be done, and it is the indecisiveness of it all. Players want to hold on and see, and yet you want to get your squad formulated because you want to plan your pre-season and be back at it at the end of June. It’s never easy.”

Ballinamallard are likely to be busy in the close season, with three departures already confirmed.

Patrick Ferry is returning to Derry City following his loan move, goalkeeper Rory Brown has signed a pre-contract agreement with Glenavon, and Sean McEvoy is departing to take up a scholarship opportunity in America.