Glentoran manager Mick McDermott has insisted he is not concerned by his side’s poor recent run, saying that judgement from fans is to be welcomed.

Eetu Vertainen’s 90th-minute winner meant McDermott’s side have lost seven of their last nine games.

“When you are 12 points behind in February,” McDermott said when asked when their form would concern him.

Losing what was the first meeting between the Blues and the Glens on Boxing Day since 2019, a fourth consecutive defeat for the Glens left the east Belfast side 10 points behind leaders Larne with two games in hand.

“We just have to win a game,” he continued.

“There were two cup games in amongst that run [of seven defeats in nine matches].

“It’s mad to think that we have still conceded the least amount of goals in the league and are still in the mix even when you consider we have won four points from seven league games.”

McDermott praised his side’s second-half performance against Linfield and felt they did not deserve to lose a match in which they fell behind to a Chris Shields penalty late in the first half before equalising through a beautiful Jay Donnelly header soon after the break.

Vertainen’s late strike led to some Glentoran supporters voicing their frustrations at the final whistle, but McDermott said criticism from fans will not affect him.

“When I stand there towards the end there were four or five voices that I hear crystal clear,” he said.

“It doesn’t stop, you stand there and you hear it but what are you going to do? It doesn’t change what you do tomorrow and it doesn’t change what you do today.

“I don’t get this thing where ‘he offended me’. People don’t offend you, you feel offended. It is how you take it. If you get offended by people shouting things or saying things then you are in the wrong game.”

‘We’ve turned hope into expectation’

McDermott took over as Glentoran manager in March 2019, when businessman Ali Pour made a major investment in the club, and has spoken at different stages about the targets he and his staff have set in terms of winning trophies.

He believes that results and performances during his tenure have changed the mindset of supporters, meaning it is inevitable that criticism will follow after disappointing results.

“If we were playing really poorly then I would be concerned because you would be looking and saying ‘who do I put in here?’

“The fans will be harsh, no doubt, but it is a good thing that they are demanding. We went from, three years ago, giving the fans hope – that is all it was. You’d walk up and down the Newtownards Road and it was just hope, hope, hope.

“Hope turns to expectation and that is what they have now. That is what you want at any football club. Expectation then puts demands on players. They have worked hard for the last three seasons and now the Glens expect to win.

“That is why they are furious when they don’t, and that is a good thing. I’d be more miserable if there was still just hope. They expect to win. That is how a football club has to evolve and Glentoran has done that. Do we need to get results? 1,000% but we are only halfway roughly.”

Supporters enjoy return of Boxing Day derbies

While reflecting on his side’s dramatic late victory at The Oval, Linfield manager David Healy said he and his players know that beating their derby rivals on Boxing Day can mean more to supporters than when they collect three points on any other matchday.

A Blues fan from childhood, Northern Ireland’s record goalscorer said he always keenly looked out for Linfield’s results when he was not able to travel over for the Boxing Day meeting with the Glens.

With the 2020 fixtures cancelled due to Covid-19, and last season’s festive derbies being played on 27 December, Monday’s full round of fixtures was a welcome return for fans throughout Northern Ireland.

Cliftonville missed the opportunity to go top of the table, at least temporarily, when they lost 3-0 in the north Belfast derby to Crusaders at Seaview, while Larne extended their lead at the top of the table to three points despite being held to a 0-0 draw by Carrick Rangers in the late kick-off.

Coleraine continued their good form by beating inconsistent Ballymena United, Glenavon took the Mid-Ulster bragging rights with victory over Portadown and – although not a traditional derby game – Dungannon Swifts enjoyed a home win against Newry City.