New season...but familiar failings in evidence again for United

It was almost as if we’d never been away...
United's opening day of the season went from bad to worse after this deflected Guy Bates effort opened the scoring. Picture: Press Eye.United's opening day of the season went from bad to worse after this deflected Guy Bates effort opened the scoring. Picture: Press Eye.
United's opening day of the season went from bad to worse after this deflected Guy Bates effort opened the scoring. Picture: Press Eye.

Just 90 minutes into the new campaign and already Ballymena United supporters are left with that same gut-wrenching feeling that seems to have typified the calendar year of 2013 so far.

Strictly speaking, it would be wrong to say that Saturday’s gubbing at the hands of Glenavon - a team who, in the past year, Ballymena have managed to make look like world-beaters - has punctured the pre-season bubble of optimism that usually exists at this time of year.

The reason for that is that I have simply seen no evidence of any great degree of optimism among Ballymena supporters.

The close-season swept across the Showgrounds like a giant tumbleweed, producing little or no transfer activity and little to whet the appetite as fans pondered starting the new campaign with almost exactly the same panel of players who had under-performed so badly in the second half of last season.

If the supporters were apathetic, then the performance of the players in Saturday’s opener could easily be described by dropping the letter ‘a’ at the front of that adjective.

It was a classic meeting of continuity versus change, with Glenavon having been one of the busiest clubs in the summer transfer market, while Ballymena’s only significant addition - Stephen McBride - had already been snapped up before last season ended.

Ninety eye-opening minutes later and it was clear that not only had Glenavon manager Gary Hamilton been much the busier of the two managers, but, crucially, the players he has brought in look as though they can help the Lurgan Blues make a significant improvement.

It’s only one round of fixtures gone and, in the grand scheme of things, I don’t believe that Saturday’s result will give a true indication of where Ballymena will finish the season, in much the same way that I didn’t suddenly think when United beat Linfield exactly 12 months ago that I was suddenly looking at the new champions.

When you look at Ballymena’s squad in comparison with the other 11 Danske Bank Premiership teams, it has mid-table written all over it.

But unless the flow of goals and, more worryingly, the continual capitulation when the goals go in, is checked very quickly, then the pre-season fears of some fans may yet prove to be founded.

* Follow Ballymena Times Sports Editor Stephen Alexander on Twitter (@Stephen_Bmena).