Holmes ready for Braidmen test

Nevertheless the ex-Glentoran man remains unbeat and believes that if results go their way then he and his team-mates still have enough fight in them to avoid relegation.

"We all agreed in the dressing room that probably the two goals costs us, because I don't think they (Lisburn Distillery) created a while lot apart from the two goals," he said.

"To be honest I think throughout the whole game we battled hard and the two mistakes which resulted in goals, you can't afford to do in this league.

"I think we missed a few chances at Distillery and to be honest all season we have lacked in the department, it's not just down the strikers it's all over the pitch that we have struggled to get goals this season; I suppose if you are making mistakes and you aren't scoring goals then the writing is on the walls sometimes."

Holmes knows with only three matches remaining, starting at Ballymena United this weekend (KO 3pm), then the Drumahoe club's fortunes need to change quickly.

"With only three matches remaining now things are getting shorter and shorter but we were obviously disappointed with the defeat to Distillery, but I still feel we have a few possives to take from the game.

"We are far from dead yet and no one in the dressing room is giving up, there are still three matches left, two of them are at home, so we'll not be giving anything up yet.

"After beating Glenavon last week we wanted to carry that on into the Distillery game, but that has been our problem all year trying to get a few positives in a row.

"We know it's going to be difficult at Ballymena, but every match has been difficult this season; but we have went to Ballymena before and won so although we are where we are, I feel we can do it again."

The Waterside men will be without centre-back David Ogilby, through suspension but both Thomas Wray and Ruairi McClean return to the squad after they missed both matches at Glenavon and Distillery last week.