Michael Ruddy believes the acquisition of Howard Beverland and the return of Paddy McNally has helped Portadown’s bid to avoid relegation.

The County Armagh side have made strides in 2022 to improve their league position and know positive results in the post-split fixtures will seal their top flight status for next season.

Ruddy, who is seen as one of the most experienced heads at Shamrock Park, insists he and his team-mates will be taking it one game at a time in their quest to steer clear of the drop.

“We have a very young team and that probably showed earlier in the season with our results but we were decimated with injuries, including myself, and a few guys played when we shouldn’t have as we were down to the bare bones,” he said.

“When you start to lose games, it can become an unwanted habit but the senior players like myself, Howard Beverland and Paddy McNally used our experience and know how to steady the ship.

“Howard is a seasoned Irish League pro and his signing was an important one in January and it’s great to see Paddy back after his injury.

“I enjoyed my time under Matthew Tipton but unfortunately results didn’t go his way and Paul Doolin has come in and we’ve had a steady team and we are starting to see the rewards of that.

“Obviously our league position isn’t where we want to be but we will be taking it game by game during the post-split fixtures.

“We can’t be distracted as we have to concentrate on ourselves as we know it’s hard to recover from two or three defeats as teams could stretch clear.

“We face Warrenpoint Town tomorrow and we are going to try and bank all three points and see where it takes us.”

The Newtownabbey man started his career at Greenisland Boys before having a short spell in the under-age set-up at Crusaders.

However, a switch to Ballymena United would change everything for the full-back as he was fast tracked to the first-team.

“When I was younger, I played football for Greenisland Boys and it was a popular club that helped produce a lot of senior internationalists such as Jonny and Corry Evans, as well as several Irish League players,” he added.

“A few years later, I was let go by Crusaders as a youth and Clifford Adams brought me to Ballymena United and despite fears I might miss out on the Foyle Cup, my registration was cleared and I ended up being Player of the Tournament after we were beat by Hibernian in the final.

“I think they liked what they seen and Glenn Ferguson was the manager at the time and he called me up for a friendly against Ballymoney United and that was the start of things.

“For the first game of the season against Linfield in 2012, Ross Black was suspended and we had no other left-back, so I made my debut and we won 2-0. In reality, I was promoted from the under-18’s right through to the first-team.”

Heartbreakingly, Ruddy would miss out on three final appearances during his time at the Ballymena Showgrounds as he recalls the news that he would be released at the end of the 2015/16 campaign.

“When I was at United, we reached the Irish Cup, League Cup and County Antrim Shield finals but unfortunately, I was injured and never played in any,” he continued.

“It wasn’t like I could play through the pain as I had a broke my foot for one of the finals, as well as breaking an AC joint in my shoulder for another.

“Those injuries came at a bad time as I was playing and I would have relished featuring in those games.

“The club brought in Stevie McBride who was a fantastic player and it was great to learn off him.

“Unfortunately, Spike lost his job and David Jeffrey came in towards the end of the season and I was out of contract.

“The club informed me that they had tied down certain players and they were going to let me go on a free.

“I respected the decision but I told David that he was making a mistake by letting me go and that I’d prove him wrong.”

Ruddy’s next move would be an important one and a switch to Ards under Colin Nixon helped the defender rediscover his love for the game.

“Ards was probably one of the best moves of my career,” he reflected.

“It got me back on the saddle and I did well there across a two-year spell.

“I managed to play well and score a few goals which alerted other clubs at the end of my contract.

“Davy must have listened to me as he tried to sign me again but Crusaders came in and I knew I’d have to take that move as they had just won the league.

“Ards is a great club and they provided me with a platform to play regular games and I’m grateful for that.”

Those strong performances would alert the attention of Crusaders as Ruddy penned a three-year-deal at Seaview.

That stint would see an Irish Cup and County Antrim Shield winners’ medal go around his neck before moving onto Portadown.

“I don’t think I could have turned the move to Crusaders down,” he acknowledged.

“They were neck and neck with Linfield, had just won the league and with their full-time set-up, I had to grasp the opportunity.

“During my time there, we won the Irish Cup and County Antrim Shield and the Cup success against Ballinamallard United is the highlight of my career.

“I got on well with all the boys at Crusaders as we had a good changing room but I just felt I wasn’t getting my fair share of game time.

“Despite being offered a new deal to stay at Crusaders, I had a great offer by Portadown and I just felt I needed to be playing football.

“I played with Matthew Tipton at Ballymena and I knew what type of person he was which made the decision easier.”