Laurelvale to face league leaders

The Villagers’ title ambitions suffered a setback against Templepatrick but Sinton is refusing to allow that one result to derail the club’s Section Two promotion push.

Laurelvale visit Cliftonville tomorrow (Saturday) as one of three consecutive away dates before the final fixture at home.

Cliftonville sit level with Laurelvale on 36 points but can boast two extra fixtures in pursuit of results to wrap up the title.

“We had a good run of results before Templepatrick so need to focus on the Cliftonville game and not let it knock our confidence,” said Sinton. “We never managed to find any rhythm with our scoring on the Templepatrick wicket and only found out after the match that the visitors the previous match also struggled for runs.

“That is part of the game of course, making the most of your home advantage, so it is not an excuse for the result but just one of the factors.

“They bowled well and the conditions also did not suit our bowlers, so it was frustrating overall.

“Now we have the perfect match in which to bounce back, with a visit to the league leaders.”

Laurelvale enter the closing stages in search of four wins as the initial target.

“We know that four wins would give us the best chance of winning the league but certainly secure promotion,” said Sinton. “You want to go up as champions if possible and we will continue to fight towards that aim.

“Another side issue from last weekend was the damage done by that Templepatrick result to our net run-rate but we just have to move forward now, starting with Cliftonville.

“We then visit BISC and Cregagh before the final match against Dundrum.”