Ballinamallard know they cannot afford to slip up against Newington on Saturday with only four games remaining before the Championship splits in half for the run-in.

The Mallards face a run of three games against the bottom three clubs before playing promotion chasing Annagh United ahead of the league dividing into a top six and a bottom six, and with Harry McConkey’s team currently three points off the top half, albeit with games in hand, the manager knows they have to put together a winning run if they are snatch a top six spot.

“Every game is winnable, but we know we have to find the consistency,” said McConkey. “That is even within the 90 minutes, never mind week to week. We are crying out for our players to do that, because they don’t do themselves justice by being too inconsistent in key moments and from week to week. We are striving for that and working hard.”

Hopes of grabbing six points in one week were dashed when Saturday’s game against Knockbreda fell victim to the weather in Belfast, and the manager and his team were forced to watch on as several of their rivals claimed wins to edge further ahead in the race for the top half.

“We wanted to go into that game and continue our momentum, but we had that taken away from us while other teams were able to play,” said McConkey.

“A last minute win for the Welders wasn’t good for us, and Ballyclare won at Annagh, so the results of the teams around us went against us. While we have two games in hand on some of them, it is a real challenge for us to make the top six.

“After playing Newington we have to go to Knockbreda who are fighting for their lives, and Institute are fighting not to be sucked into the bottom two. Then you have Annagh who are still fighting to keep alive their hopes of getting that second promotion place.”

The last clash against Newington was a memorable 4-3 victory for the Mallards, as they recovered from 3-0 down to snatch an unlikely victory. McConkey would dearly love a less dramatic victory for his side at Ferney Park, but he knows they will have to be at their best against a side that won 3-0 at Knockbreda last time out.

“They will come with a real aggression because they are fighting for their lives,” said McConkey. “Having played them twice this season we know that they are a team that battles right to the end. Even that day of the 4-3 they came at us out of the traps really hard, and when we played them at home they scored a good goal on the counter attack and had a good energy all game.

“We are going to try to win the midfield battle and get on the front foot and exploit them where we possibly can in the wide areas. While they are second from bottom, in this league the bottom teams can beat the top teams. We have seen that all season.

“It’s a big game for us because we want to build on the success of the win against the Welders. We are at home on our own pitch, and if we can get another good home performance and come away with three points then it could start to give us a little bit of much needed momentum. Both teams desperately need three points, and we have got to be in that mode from now on because that is what the rest of the season is going to be about for us.”

Ballinamallard have several players carrying knocks and strains and Peter Campbell picked up an injury while playing for the Reserves on Saturday that is likely to rule him out of the squad, but Shane McGinty is edging closer to a return to action.

“We are hoping that Shane will be pushing to come into contention for the Newington match,” revealed the manager.

“We have picked up suspensions and injuries, and that has been ongoing, and we feel we never have the full depth of our squad.

“We know injuries are all part and parcel of the game but you can be hit very badly at times, and it is a concern that we are a little lightweight now.

“We are going to have to bring in young players and give them opportunities and they must be ready to grab that.

“In the longer term that can be a healthy thing.”