Glackin hails Strand supporters as the 12th man following Voodoo Cup triumph

Strand Rovers manager Stephen Glackin was ecstatic after his side's Voodoo Cup triumph on Saturday, on what was an unbelievable day for everyone involved with the club. 

Glackin’s side lifted the Voodoo Cup at Diamond Park on Saturday afternoon following a dramatic conclusion, with his side slotting home a match-winning penalty deep into extra-time to seal cup glory against Drumbar United on a 2-1 scoreline. 

Speaking in the aftermath of Saturday’s showpiece, Glackin praised the performance and character of his outfit on what was a huge day for the club, mentioning that there is never a dull moment with Strand Rovers. 

“It feels unbelievable, it's hard to put into words with the way that game went. With Strand Rovers there’s never a dull moment, we just don’t do it the easy way anyway that is for sure,” said Glackin.

It was a disappointing afternoon for Drumbar United and certainly a heartbreaking way to lose the contest in what was their first county final in 34 years. However, they performed outstandingly and contributed massively to a fantastic game of football. These words were echoed by the humble Strand Rovers boss post match. 

“Just to say about Drumbar, they were absolutely exceptional out there today. From the very first whistle we found it very hard to break them down and we had to change our system at half time in order to try and open the game out a little bit, which I think it did to a certain extent.

“Although, they came battling back again and so I suppose just full credit to both teams for contributing to what was a really good game of football.”

The match’s decisive moment came right before the full-time whistle when Strand Rovers were awarded a penalty kick in the 110th minute. Strand Rovers' midfielder Matthew O’Donnell bravely stepped up and tucked the ball into the bottom corner to seal victory. 

The victorious manager commended the match-winner, stating that O’Donnell never avoids the pressure moments. Glackin also mentioned how difficult of a time it was for their opposition to concede, having no time to respond to the setback. 

“Matty never shies away from responsibility like that there,” said Glackin. “We were just talking on the sideline about who was going to step up when the penalty was given but just again for the Drumbar players, it’s such a tough time to concede it as you have no time to bounce back from it, but they’ll have a lot of very good days ahead of them.”

Cars and buses came in their droves on Saturday to support Stephen Glackin and his men, on what was a huge occasion for the community. The Strand boss hailed the travelling fans not only on Saturday but throughout their journey to the final, labeling them as the twelfth man.

“Yeah it's fantastic, our supporters go everywhere. Two weeks ago we played down in Keadue in the cup quarter-final. We were totally written off going down there that day and they all came down to support and they were the twelfth man. It was the same last week and again today. So yeah, they are unbelievable and we couldn’t ask for better than that.”