Kilbirnie Ladeside boss Stevie Swift admitted his relief after steering his side to a 1-0 victory over Auchinlck Talbot in yesterday’s Ardagh Glass Cup Final.

The Blasties had been rated outright underdogs heading into the Meadow Park staged contest following a dismal start to their Super Premier Division campaign which read no wins in five games.

Yet from referee David Dickinson’s first whistle blast they displayed a battling spirit and defensive doggedness that the reigning West Region champions simply could not overcome on the day.

A delighted Swifty said: "I told the players at half-time that one goal was going to decide the final and it would be up to them to grab any opportunity when it came their way.

“Thankfully they did just that and I also felt they were excellent in working their socks off to close down Talbot and restrict them to precious few sights of our goal.

“In fact, other than a Craig McCracken header straight at him right on the half-time whistle, I cannot remember our goalkeeper Kieran Hughes having a save of note to make and that speaks volumes about the covering work of the guys in front of him.

“Mark Staunton, Ryan Haxton and Ian Gray were magnificent in a three-man defence while in front of them Davie Anderson pulled the midfield strings and ensured the team made forward strides whenever we had the ball.

“ He was voted man of the match, but I believe each and every Kilbirnie player deserves plaudits for a wonderfully disciplined and committed performance that allowed me into the winner’s circle for the first ever time as a manager.

“I enjoyed the experience so much that I’m desperate to do it all again and I reckon this squad of players can get me there.”

Kilbirnie’s character was obvious from early on when Auchinleck made a high tempo start to the Ardagh Final that almost paid dividends when an exchange of passes led to Bryan Young dinking a cross to the back post that Dwayne Hyslop agonisingly missed with the goal at his mercy.

Another near thing occurred as a defence splitting Craig McCracken pass sent Stevie Wilson scampering clear on goal only for the backtracking Haxton to foil him with a last ditch tackle just when the midfielder was poised to press the trigger.

Hyslop cracking a 20-yard drive just over and McCracken’s headed chance further summed up Talbot’s dominance in the opening 45 minutes.

But there was a marked difference in the exchanges after the interval as Kilbirnie began to be seen as more of an attacking threat thanks in no small part to striker Martin Grehan winning his share of aerial contests with direct opponent Danny Boyle.

Team boss Swift said: "Martin’s worth to the team is so under-rated at times yet his ability to win flicks and operate as an out and pout target man is so vital to the way we set out to play.

“He allowed us to play some 20 yards further up the field throughout the second half and that meant we were always posing a danger whenever we had possession as typified at our goal when Martin has taken the ball to feet and turned his marker before sliding a low pass into the path of Eddie McTiernan who has won his race with a Talbot defender to poke the ball past big Andy Leishman for 1-0.

“There was still half an hour left to be played when we scored but I knew we were home and dry at that stage “

Auchinleck gaffer Tommy Sloan rang the changes with three substitutions but all to no avail as Kilbirnie withstood some heavy periods of pressure to run outwinners of the silverware they last held aloft in 2009.

Proud gaffer Swifty added: "The players followed our tactical instructions to the letter and when we’re in the mood then few if any teams can handle us however the players cannot look on form as something they can flick on and off by pressing a switch.

“Consistency is the key and I’d like today’s victory to be used as a springboard to string together a winning run and get our season back on track.