David Jeffrey believes ever improving Leroy Millar has emerged as the embodiment of Ballymena United’s rapid progress over the past 12 months.
Homegrown midfielder Millar, who hails from the nearby village of Cullybackey, bagged the winner in Saturday’s 1-0 derby victory over Coleraine to gift the Sky Blues a crucial three points in the race for second.
Boasting a five point advantage over third-placed Glenavon with only two games to play, United are edging ever closer to automatic Europa League qualification and a first runners-up finish since 1980.
Linfield title presentation: Reaction from David Healy, Andy Waterworth and more
A draw at home to Gary Hamilton’s Lurgan Blues in the penultimate fixture of the regular season at the Showgrounds on Tuesday night will seal a memorable campaign for the Braid club.
And Millar, dubbed the ‘Cullybackey Pele’ by fans and a leading candidate for most improved player in the Danske Bank Premiership, has played a key role.
“I love it when our fans sing ‘he’s one of our own’ about Leroy because he is,” said Jeffrey.
“He scored a superb goal against Coleraine but there were other parts of his game which maybe weren’t as eye catching but equally important to the win.
“He made several crucial tackles inside our 18 yard box and tracked runners. On one occasion he set off like an Olympic sprinter to cover a run by Jamie Glackin.”
Jeffrey agrees Millar has taken his game to a new level this season and believes the 23-year-old has epitomised Uniteds impressive upturn in fortunes.
Scrambling for a top six finish last year, the Braidmen were this season’s surprise package, going toe-to-toe with Linfield in the title race before David Healy's men clinched the Gibson Cup a fortnight ago.
Jeffrey said: “Bryan McLaughlin and I love working with players and we simply asked Leroy to work really hard at his game, but if the player doesn’t want to engage they won’t improve.
“It all comes down to Leroy’s attitude, application and diligence in wanting to improve and he has done that fantastically well.
“He has really stepped up to the mark for us and he probably epitomises the progress that we have made as a group over this past year.”
Jeffrey accepts it is difficult being a “prophet in your own land” but believes local lad Millar's energy and efficiency at the heart of Ballymena's engine room have won over the most one-eyed cynics.
Saturday’s derby goal (his 10th of the season) and a memorable winner in a pulsating 2-1 victory over Linfield at the Showgrounds in December were also signs of his growing influence.
“I’m delighted for Leroy because there were maybe times in the past when as the local boy he was an easy target for some unfair criticism,” said Jeffrey.
“I have always said a player will only get better if he wants to get better and Leroy has taken up that challenge magnificently. He has been superb.”
While Saturday’s derby win secured a first top-three finish for the club in 38 years, Jeffrey is eager Ballymena push on to deliver second and guaranteed Europa League football.
“Securing a first top-three finish in such a long time for the club is a phenomenal achievement, but the challenge now is to go one better,” he said.
“The league table tells us one more point gets us second, but it’s still a point away from where we want to get to and we know we still have work to do.
“We can take nothing for granted against a Glenavon side who produced a superb display to win 4-0 at Linfield on Saturday. That sends out a warning to us that we have to be ready."
Keep up-to-date with all the very latest news, what's on, sport and everything else in Belfast and beyond with the Belfast Live app.
Only select news that interests you by picking the topics you want to display on the app's homepage. Plus, our enhanced user experience includes live blogs, video, interactive maps and slick picture galleries. Download it now and get involved.
Click here to get it from the App Store or here for Google Play .
