Is Portadown's season finally up and running?

Few would have expected David Jeffrey's return to management to be quite as difficult but, after eight weeks, Portadown have won their first game of the season.

Going into the latest weekend of Irish Premiership action, the Ports were the only team yet to register a win and sat four points adrift at the foot of the table.

However, a convincing 3-1 victory over Limavady United ended their winless run and offered Jeffrey and his players a much-needed lift.

But will this signal a turning point for the Ports? BBC Sport NI takes a look.

It was a tough opening few weeks for Irish League veteran David Jeffrey at the helm of his new club.

The 60-year-old has built his managerial reputation on producing teams that are organised, competitive and relentless, whether chasing titles at Linfield or guiding Ballymena United to League Cup success.

Yet during the opening weeks of this season, Portadown looked a long way off resembling a typical Jeffrey side.

However, that began to change against Limavady when glimpses of his style began to shine through with the side pushing forward in numbers and showing intensity.

Portadown had scored just five goals in their opening nine games but netted three times against a newly promoted Limavady side, who had won three of their past four games.

It will not just be the crucial three points that will please Jeffrey, but also the manner in which his side responded to setbacks throughout the game.

It was a nightmare start for the home side when Rhys Breen was forced off after just three minutes, but substitute James Teelan made an immediate impact and opened the scoring.

Having waited so long for their first win, Portadown could have easily let Limavady's quick equaliser unsettle them.

However, they responded in emphatic fashion and scored two goals during a clinical second-half display, with Limavady the side who struggled and the Ports unlucky to have not scored more.

'It is a new experience for me' - Jeffrey

For Jeffrey the result represented a welcome change of circumstances for a manager who is more accustomed to managing teams with ambitions of winning trophies, rather than a side struggling at the basement of the table.

After a two-year spell out of management, the 60-year-old said that his new challenge is unfamiliar territory.

"We find ourselves in a very difficult and disappointing place, there is no shying away from that," Jeffrey told BBC Sport NI.

"After a very positive pre-season, the season has been difficult and I felt, at times, we did not have the good fortune that our hard work deserved.

"The league table does not tell lies, and we just had to stick together as a group, staff and players.

"It is a new experience for me, but it was back to simple basics, self-belief and sticking by your players and staff. Making sure we work as hard as we can and hoping we get our reward on some occasion."

For Portadown, the challenge now is turning one positive result into something more sustainable, and Ben Kennedy could have an important part to play.

Every team, no matter if they are pushing for the Gibson Cup or trying to avoid a relegation battle, needs players who are capable of turning chances into goals.

Kennedy is no stranger to the Irish League and has already proven already during his career that he can influence games at this level.

The 29-year-old scored 39 goals and registered 23 assists during his 109 appearances for Crusaders before netting 16 goals at Ballymena United.

Last season did not go the way that Kennedy would have hoped and now, rediscovering form and full fitness is not only important for his new club, but also himself.

Working under former boss Jeffrey, someone he knows well, could help the striker re-establish himself as a consistent scorer in the Premiership.

Everyone knows that no two years in the Irish Premiership are the same and it remains too early to start discussing relegation battles.

However, last season provided a stark reminder of how damaging a poor start can be when Glenavon, who did not register a point from their opening 11 games, dropped to the Championship for the first time in 21 seasons despite an impressive second half of the season.

Portadown no longer have the unwanted distinction of being the only team in the division without a win and that should ease some of the pressure on the club.

But Jeffrey is far too experienced to get carried away by one result with a tough run of fixtures ahead for the side.

"No one is getting carried away," he continued.

"We did fantastically well against Linfield in a game which we could and should have won and then the next game Bangor taught us a lesson.

"You do not let your feet off the ground, it is nice to get a win, but our feet will be firmly nailed to the ground."

One victory will not erase the problems that Portadown faced in the opening weeks of the season, but it can change the mood around the club.

Their next match against in-form Glentoran will be key to see if the side simply enjoyed a welcome afternoon of relief or whether Jeffrey's outfit have finally found the beginning of something they can build on.