Ballinamallard United centre-back Peter Maguire has said he wants to do his new manager proud, after he signed a deal to remain at the club for the 2024/25 season.

The 21 year old first joined the club on loan from Sligo Rovers in the summer of 2022, and he quickly established himself as a first-team regular alongside Stafford at the heart of the Mallard’s defence.

Securing Maguire’s signature was high on the list of priorities for Stafford when he took on the manager’s role last month, and Maguire admits his former teammates’ appointment was a key factor in him agreeing to remain at the club.

“Me and Staff have a good relationship and I really respect him,” said Maguire.

“I want to play well for him this year and I want to be a leader in his group. That is where my head is at. This time last year I was playing alongside him and I learnt a lot from him.

"Obviously he was a great centre half and he had a great career, so I can learn a lot off him. I want to be one of his main men this year and I want to do him proud.”

Maguire was a regular starter for the Mallards under former managers Harry McConkey and Tommy Canning, and his performances had started to attract interest from other clubs before his end to last season was curtailed by injury.

He only started two league games in 2024 and he admits his recovery from injury, and not a change of club, was the only thing on his mind over the last six months.

“There were a few rumours,” he acknowledged, “but I had a bad injury last season and my focus has just been on being able to get back on the pitch.

"I missed the last 12 games so I wasn’t really bothered about any other stuff. Thank God the injury is behind me now and I feel good.

"I worked hard in the off-season to really put it behind me because I can’t do another season of watching from the sidelines. I’m fit and ready to go.”

Maguire is likely to be a key figure for the upcoming season, and he feels he has a good squad around him for the new campaign.

“We haven’t really had anyone leaving which is good,” he said.

“We have a good group of lads and we showed that at times last year, but we struggled with injuries and consistency. This year I think we are going to give it a right go, and we are all ready for the first game against Ballyclare.”

Saturday’s first game of the season against Ballyclare Comrades is a repeat of the Mallard's final game of last season.

They lost that 4-0 as their season came to a disappointing conclusion, but Maguire feels that their preparations over the summer have left them in a much stronger position to face Comrades now.

“We are looking forward to it definitely,” he said.

“We had a bit of a tough season last year and we struggled, especially towards the end, but we have had a good pre-season and we are quietly confident. We will take one game at a time and see how it goes.

"Pre-season has been tough, but we have had really good friendlies. We have had Premiership opposition in Loughgall and Portadown, as well as Finn Harps, so those matches have been really good and the training has been really intense.

"There has been no drop-off in training, so I feel like we are good to go. We are ready for Ballyclare."