Finn Harps have to start games on the front foot - skipper Tony McNamee 

Tony McNamee says Finn Harps’ sluggish start to games is costing them league points. 

Kevin McHugh’s side has promotion play-off ambitions this season but six games in, they have recorded just one win with three draws and two losses, pinning them in sixth spot. 

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Their positive results are bookended by defeats on opening night away to Athlone and last Friday night’s disappointing 1-0 loss in Kerry. 

Still, McNamee says slow starts to games is having an effect on their ability to pick up victories. 

If they can nip that bad habit in the backside, they can start to string more three-point hauls together. And the hope is all that starts on Saturday evening away to Longford Town. 

“Aside from the first day out in Athlone, we’ve been really competitive. We’re finishing games well. 

“But the concession of goals has been frustrating. The ones we’re conceding are too easy. They are just split-second lapses but we’re being punished. 

“The only game we’ve taken the lead in is the UCD one and it’s our only win. In that sense, we need to start scoring first. 

“Even in Kerry, had we nicked one, I firmly believe we could have gone on and won it. 

“But we have shown guts, in fact, we’ve come back into games well. But, as I said, we need to get on the front foot and much more often”.

Harps fell behind midway through the first-half in Kerry and Cian Murphy’s breakthrough would eventually prove to be decisive. 

And even though Harps were the side in the ascendancy for most of the second-half they just couldn’t force an equaliser.

“The goal we shipped, it was disappointing. But we responded well and we could have come away with at least a share of the spoils. 

“We played well in the second-half. In the last 25 minutes especially, we looked like the only side that was going to score. But we just couldn’t find that breakthrough”. 

Harps are on the road once more at the weekend when they head for Longford Town and they will be shy a number of lads like Josh Cullen and Gavin McAteer. 

Both are part of the Republic of Ireland’s U-19 squad that is currently in Scotland for the first round of qualifiers for the 2027 European Championships.

Ireland are in Group A2 and up against Scotland, Poland and Italy with all games taking place in Glasgow.

“We’ll be down a few bodies. We have two lads away with the Ireland U-19s.  I know we’ll miss them but it’s great to see them getting international recognition”.