Duncan Ferguson's first match as Glentoran manager against Ballymena United has been postponed because of a waterlogged pitch. The decision followed a midday pitch inspection at The Oval on Saturday, where heavy rain under a Met Office yellow warning made the surface unplayable.
Ferguson, appointed as the new manager on Monday, must now wait for his first game in charge. His initial match is now planned to be an away fixture against Coleraine on Friday, 30 October. The postponement also meant the Women's Challenge Cup final involving Glentoran and Cliftonville was affected.
The league game between Ballymena United and Glentoran has been rearranged for Tuesday, 27 October. This provides Jim Ervin's team additional preparation time for a difficult away match against the side currently third in the standings. Ballymena United sit sixth in the Premiership on 15 points after 11 games, a record of four wins, three draws and four losses. They are 17 points behind leaders Linfield in the title race.
Ballymena United approach the rescheduled game in sixth position, having taken 15 points from 11 matches. They are in good form, with four victories from their previous five league outings. Their recent form shows four wins and one loss from the last five, a sequence that includes a 3-1 victory over Newington Youth on Tuesday 20 October where I. Rutkowski, C. McConnell and S. Edogun scored, and a 2-1 win over Crusaders FC on Saturday 17 October with goals from J. Archer and K. Lyons-Foster. This puts them on a two-game winning run. For the season, they have scored 17 goals and conceded 15.
Their next scheduled match after facing Glentoran is at home to Dungannon Swifts. The previous encounter between the teams in August finished as a 2-0 victory for Glentoran at the Showgrounds.
