I'm was too lenient says Quinn

Quinn had targeted a top six spot for his side and things couldn’t have got off to a better start as they picked up 27 points from their first 13 league games. However, after a 2-0 defeat at the hands of bitter rivals, Portadown, results turned sour for the Blues as they went 11 Carling Premiership matches without a victory.

The boss says that he could have taken a firmer stance against those players who weren’t delivering but also conceded that his loyal nature is unlikely to change.

“Maybe if I had been a bit more ruthless in some of my team selections it would have been better. I’m a loyal sort of a manager that can forgive bad performances and keep the players in to turn it round but maybe I was a bit too lenient with a couple of players now and again. I was a wee bit sentimental with my team selections at times but I’ve always been that way and it’s always served me well so I’ll probably not change.”

Those poor performances failed to improve for large parts of the season though and thus it was a disappointing term for the boss.

“The season was not a success as we didn’t finish in the top six,” he began plainly.

“That was our ultimate aim and we lifted all our expectations early days with the great start that we had. We even led the table for a few hours but the defeat to Portadown at Shamrock Park knocked us.

“We had a very bad run after that and we became a bit concerned with getting sucked into the relegation area which Glenavon have been in over the last few years.

“Luckily enough, we got another few wins to steer clear of that. Overall we could do better, as the teacher’s report might say.”

However, Quinn picked out Trevor Molloy as the main bright spark in an otherwise dull season, also giving club captain, Hugh Dickson a special mention after his fantastic start to the campaign was brought to an abrupt halt with a head injury.

“Trevor Molloy stands out in particular and overall was our most consistent player but I’ve got to think about Hugh Dickson as well.

“He had a fantastic start to the season. He scored a very brave header to give us a 3-2 win over Cliftonville and got a fractured skull out of it. We lost him for the majority of the season and we certainly missed him in the centre of defence because he had been doing so well.”

Quinn will hope that the defender is more present next season and has rivals Portadown in his sights as he looks to shift the balance of power in Mid-Ulster.

“Our target is the top six and a good Irish Cup run. We want to be competing and holding our own with the Linfields and Glentorans and particularly Portadown.

“The Mid-Ulster rivalry is fierce which I have come to realise! On paper we should be able to compete with these teams but you don’t win anything on paper.

“Hopefully next season I’ll have more of my own identity on the team.”