Ben Wylie made his debut for Cliftonville against Newry City
Cliftonville new boy Ben Wylie’s home debut promises to be a real family affair — at both ends of the ground.
The Reds host the 21-year-old’s hometown side Ballymena United on Saturday and, while his father Keith — a former Sky Blues player — is poised for a seat among the Cliftonville support, mother Andrea is vowing to take up residence in the away stand.
A Ballymena-mad family with considerable sporting pedigree, Ben’s younger brother Lee Sweetlove plays in United’s academy and sister Abi — another ex-Braid talent — signed a new contract with Linfield on the same day that Wylie put pen to paper at Solitude.
What’s more, his girlfriend Keela and her family are members of the Red Army!
It should come as no surprise, therefore, that a natural competitive spirit will spill into Saturday’s Premiership showdown.
“My da will be in the Cliftonville end but my ma’s saying she’ll be in the Ballymena end,” says Ben, who enjoyed a loan stint with the Sky Blues earlier in his career.
“My girlfriend’s family all support Cliftonville, so I’m sure a few of them will be there as well.
“Hopefully it’s a good game and I don’t get too much abuse — it does tend to be the people who know you the best that dish it out!
“It’s all good fun though and I’m looking forward to it.”
Something else the Northern Ireland Under-21 international is excited about sampling is the bona fide Irish League match day atmosphere.
On loan at Ballymena from Celtic during the Covid-interrupted 2020/21 campaign, he largely played in front of empty houses, with limited numbers of supporters permitted on a sporadic basis at different stages of the season — an experience he admits somewhat tainted his
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