Players will pick themselves up after defeat - Taylor

Johnny Taylor insists his Ballymena United team-mates shouldn’t be down-hearted - despite suffering back to-back defeats in the Danske Bank Premiership.
Johnny Taylor makes an important clearing header under pressure from Linfield's ANdrew Waterworth at Windsor Park. Picture: Press Eye.Johnny Taylor makes an important clearing header under pressure from Linfield's ANdrew Waterworth at Windsor Park. Picture: Press Eye.
Johnny Taylor makes an important clearing header under pressure from Linfield's ANdrew Waterworth at Windsor Park. Picture: Press Eye.

The towering defender believes the Sky Blues still have enough in their locker to halt the sequence of defeat and climb back up the league table.

Taylor produced a typically whole-hearted display in Saturday’s defeat at Windsor Park where he felt that United didn’t get the rub of the green.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“It was one of those days where things just didn’t seem to go our way,” said the former Glentoran defender.

“We conceded two soft goals in the first half and the boys’ heads were down going in at half-time.

“But we re-grouped at half-time, came out and got the early goal.

“We thought we were getting back into it but then came the penalty - I’ll have to have another look at it but I thought at the time it was pretty soft.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Losing Jenks on top of that and going down to 10 men was a big blow and it was backs against the wall for a while but we had chances as well to make the score a wee bit closer.

“We’ll just have to pick ourselves up again for the game against Glentoran.

“We’re in the middle of a hard run of fixtures - Portadown, Cliftonville, Linfield and Glentoran - but we’ve proved already this season we’re capable of getting results against good teams.”

Many observers pointed to Taylor’s lengthy absence through injury -he damaged a knee when landing on the Showgrounds stock car track during a game last October - as a major contributory factor in the Sky Blues’ dip in form during the second half of the season.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Now fully fit again, he is a key player for manager Glenn Ferguson and ended up wearing the captain’s armband on Saturday after the dismissal of Allan Jenkins.

“I was out of the game for five months which was a huge frustration for me.

“I was meant to be out for nine months but I managed to get back earlier than was expected.

“I was back in time to play the last two or three games of last season.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“There was obviously nothing to play for at that stage but it was great for me to get a couple of games under my belt before the season was out and get myself prepared for pre-season.”

Taylor has been a stand-out performer in an indifferent start to the campaign for United but he insists: “I’ve felt my own form has dipped a bit in the past couple of weeks.

“I’m hoping to improve and we have the players around me to help me do that,” added Johnny.

Related topics: