Glentoran boss Mick McDermott says he's relaxed and more than content to be neck-and-neck with Linfield in the title race with 10 games left to play.
With Linfield’s trip to Carrick Rangers falling victim to Covid-19 protocols on Friday night, the Glens can go top with a draw or win at Glenavon on Saturday afternoon.
And after suffering a 2-1 defeat at Larne last weekend, McDermott, who is chasing the East Belfast club’s first Gibson Cup since 2009, is eager to take full advantage.
“Would I have taken being level on points at the top with 10 games left? Absolutely," said McDermott.
"You always want to be as close to the top as possible and we are where we are in the table."
Last season, Glentoran were eight points worse off than their Big Two rivals with 10 games left to play.
“When you fall seven, eight, nine or 11 points behind you’re left hoping for the teams above you to lose three or four games and you have to win 10 out of 10," said McDermott.
“The gap for success starts to narrow when you’re in that position. If you’re in that top band - which we are at the moment with Linfield and Cliftonville - you take that all day long.
“We also have to play each other after the split, so there’s a lot of football still to be played."
Last Friday night's 2-1 defeat at Larne helped knock Glentoran off the summit, with Linfield going top on goal difference thanks to a 1-0 win over Portadown the following day.
“We went to Inver Park expecting a tough game and that's what we got," said McDermott. "We needed to do a bit more and we didn’t do enough with the territory we had.
"If we had we would have got out with a result, no doubt, but we always said there’d be twists and turns along the way. Let’s see where we are come the end of the season."
SATURDAY'S FIXTURES (all 3pm): Cliftonville v Crusaders; Coleraine v Ballymena United; Dungannon Swifts v Larne; Glenavon v Glentoran; Portadown v Warrenpoint Town.
