Killer Robert Howard became nervous and defensive when his bogus alibi over Arlene Arkinson's disappearance was challenged, a detective has recalled.

Arlene, a 15-year-old from Castlederg, County Tyrone, vanished after a night at a disco in County Donegal in 1994. Her body has never been found.
Det Con Gareth Jenkins was the first officer tasked to investigate what was then a missing person report.
He told an inquest into Arlene's murder he questioned Howard at his home.
He knew Howard as, around that time, he was regularly signing bail at Castlederg RUC station in relation to an alleged sex attack on a teenager.
Howard had  claimed he had not been near Arlene's house in Drumnabey Park on the Saturday night in question. He further claimed he saw the teenager being driven around Castlederg by an unknown man the following day.
However, other witnesses subsequently claimed they had seen Howard in Drumnabey Park on the Saturday night she went missing.
It later emerged that Howard, along with his partner's daughter and her boyfriend, had collected Arlene at her house and driven her across the Irish border for a night out in Bundoran, County Donegal.
On the return journey Howard and Arlene were the last two left in the car. She was never seen again.
Mr Jenkins said in his previous encounters with Howard, both in relation to Arlene's disappearance and when he signed bail at the police station, he was "plausible and courteous".
"This time it was different," he said.
"This time I had it in my head that someone wasn't telling the truth.
"He was denying his car had been in Drumnabey Park as others had claimed.
"He more or less ushered me out the door, he ushered me down the hallway towards the door.
"Whilst he repeatedly denied it (being at her house), his body language was different.
"Probably for the first time I saw him nervous and jittery. I know I wasn't wanted, I knew he wanted me out of the house."
Mr Jenkins also recalled a statement he received from a man who said he knew Howard.
He said while he and his cousin were drinking on a Letterkenny, County Donegal, street in 1997, they got talking to someone he described as a "tinker".
The man said the "tinker" claimed Howard had lived on a caravan site in Letterkenny and while he was there he had told him about a girl he had strangled.
"The 'tinker' said that he was present when Howard buried the girl," the statement said.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Theresa Villiers has defended the decision not to disclose some files to the inquest.
The Public Interest Immunity (PII) application was made by the Northern Ireland Office amid claims information in files on the schoolgirl's death could potentially damage the public interest.
Coroner Brian Sherrard heard legal submissions on the contentious move in a private hearing on Tuesday.
It was anticipated he would make a ruling on the application on Wednesday.
At the opening of Wednesday's hearing, Mr Sherrard said "some useful work" had been done at the private hearing.
However, he added that he would need further information before making a final decision.
Ms Villiers said it was necessary to prevent publication of information which could hamper future police investigations.
"The reality is there would only be withholding of information which would effectively make it more difficult for the police to bring to justice people responsible for this kind of horrible crime in the future," she said.
"I think it is important also to be aware that the coroner is looking at all the information and it is the coroner who will decide whether any of it gets withheld."
In a public hearing ahead of Tuesday's behind-closed-doors session, it emerged that the classified files name both a man interrogated by paramilitaries and the person whose bogus tip-off prompted police to dig up a bereaved family member's garden.
Lawyers for the Arkinson family had argued that the identities of those individuals should be made public.
Howard was acquitted of Arlene's murder by a jury unaware of his long record of sex crimes, including the murder of a south London schoolgirl, he always remained the police's prime suspect in Arlene's death.
Howard, 71, had been due to give evidence before the inquest.
He died at HMP Frankland in County Durham last October.


Jeremy Corbyn has called for a major investment in skills to tackle a "lost decade" in which there had been an "explosion" of low-paid, insecure jobs.

But Education Secretary Justine Greening, also addressing the British Chambers of Commerce, says she wants firms to back a "skills revolution" and her plans for new technical qualifications.
With warnings of a post-Brexit skills gap, the Labour and Conservative representatives gave business leaders their plans to improve skills.
Labour leader Mr Corbyn told a British Chambers of Commerce conference in London that investing in education was the path away from "stagnant living standards", even if it meant raising taxes.
But Ms Greening called on business leaders to support the so-called "T-levels", which are intended to raise the quality and status of vocational qualifications.
The education secretary said that in England from next April, Â£50m will be available to fund work placements and Â£15m to help improve further education.
The investment is part of the Â£500m for technical education announced by Chancellor Philip Hammond in the Budget in March.
Ms Greening told business leaders that she wanted an "army of skilled young people".
But Mr Corbyn said the economy needed to be revived by a much bigger investment in skills - and that would mean businesses paying higher corporation tax.
The Labour leader said that improving the UK's poor record on productivity meant investing in education and training.
Otherwise he warned of an economy built on "low-paid insecure jobs".
Mr Corbyn said that too often only "lip service" was paid to valuing vocational training.
He rejected the idea of lower taxes, saying that there were "no short cuts" for a strong education system, and the alternative was becoming a "low tax haven on the shores of Europe".
Mr Corbyn repeated his commitment to scrapping university tuition fees - and said that high levels of debt could deter young people from staying in education.
He said that "not everyone can access the bank of mum and dad to go to university".
Mr Corbyn called for better funding for schools - saying that it was "utterly unacceptable where schools were having to beg parents for donations to cover the basics".
"We lose out as a society if we don't have a highly qualified workforce," he told the business and education conference.


Emily Blunt has spoken out against a so-called "mummy cult" she believes puts unwelcome pressure on new mothers.

"I think there is a huge societal pressure on women when it comes to motherhood, this sort of mummy cult that goes on," the actress said.
"I think it sort of makes women feel that they have to be a bit defensive about the choices that they make."
The 33-year-old will soon be seen in The Girl on the Train, in which she plays an alcoholic divorcee.
Her character, Rachel, has unsuccessfully tried to have children.
Blunt, who has two children with actor husband John Krasinski, said modern women faced pressure over "whether they want to be a mother" and "whether they want to breastfeed".
"In the domestic world... women can be a bit cruel about each other, more so than any other environment," she said at the London premiere of her new film on Tuesday.
The actress's comments followed the airing of Motherland on BBC Two, a sitcom pilot about a group of mothers with differing approaches to child-rearing.
The programme drew praise from the Telegraph for its "sharply drawn" depiction of "the cloak and dagger politicking of the stay-at-home parenting circuit".
In The Girl on the Train, Rachel believes she has information relevant to the disappearance of a former neighbour.
The film version of Paula Hawkins' best-selling novel is out in the UK on 5 October.
Follow us on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, on Instagram, or if you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


Developing post-Brexit trade with the Gulf region will be the focus of a two-day trip to Bahrain by Theresa May.

She will be the first UK prime minister and female politician to attend the six-nation Gulf Co-operation Council.
Mrs May said some would argue the UK should not seek to strengthen ties with the states because of their controversial human rights records.
"But we don't uphold our values and human rights by turning our back on this issue," she insisted.
The prime minister will attend a dinner with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman on Tuesday evening, before addressing the plenary session on Wednesday morning.
She will announce a space technology tie-up with Abu Dhabi and a new multiple five-year visa entry system for UK firms doing business in Saudi Arabia.
"There is so much we can do together - whether it is helping one another to prevent terrorist attacks, Gulf investment regenerating cities across the UK or British businesses helping Gulf countries to achieve their long-term vision of reform," Mrs May said.
"So I hope my visit will herald the start of a new chapter in relations between the United Kingdom and the Gulf."
During a series of bilateral meetings, Downing Street said it expected the situations in Syria and Yemen and relations with Iran to be discussed.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Sunday he had repeatedly expressed concerns to his Saudi Arabian counterpart about its involvement in the Yemeni civil war amid allegations that civilians had been targeted during bombing campaigns against Houthi rebels fighting the government.
But he said he did not believe a "threshold has been crossed" requiring the suspension of British arms sales to Saudi Arabia.
Mrs May will meet young people in Bahrain to discuss progress on political and social reforms since the widespread unrest in the Gulf nation in 2011, which prompted a much-criticised crackdown by the authorities.
"No doubt there will be some people in the UK who say we shouldn't seek stronger trade and security ties with these countries because of their record on human rights," she said.
"[But] we achieve far more by stepping up, engaging with these countries and working with them to encourage and support their plans for reform.
"That is how Britain can be a force for good in the world as well as helping to keep our people safe and create new opportunities for business."
The government says it has identified Â£30bn of high-value opportunities for British businesses across 15 different sectors in the region over the next five years.


Jordan Ayew's late penalty gave Steve Bruce his first win as Aston Villa manager to end Reading's unbeaten Championship home record.

Substitute Ayew was tripped by Liam Moore as he tried to get a shot away and he made no mistake from the spot.
Villa had led through a deflected Jonathan Kodjia shot in the first half from Albert Adomah's pinpoint cross.
Yann Kermorgant headed Reading's equaliser from the rebound after Danny Williams had a penalty saved.
Garath McCleary came close to snatching a stoppage-time leveller for the hosts, but his low drive went inches wide of the far post.
The victory was Villa's first in 11 matches and a first away from home since August 2015, on the opening day of the Premier League season at Bournemouth.
Reading have now gone four league games without a win.
The Royals had 73% of possession in the first half but had nothing to show for it.
Jonathan Swift came close, forcing a close-range block from Pierluigi Gollini in the Villa goal, moments after Kodjia's opener.
A more direct approach from the hosts resulted in Aly Cissokho tripping McCleary and conceding a penalty from a searching ball into the box.
USA international Williams was denied by Gollini, but Kermorgant was alert to head in his third goal of the season.
Both sides showed the intent to go for a winner, but Reading's laboured approach continued and Villa sensed the chance to press them deep inside their own half.
Ayew replaced Rudy Gestede in attack and his weaving run into the area was ended abruptly by Moore's ill-timed tackle.
Ali Al Habsi was wrong-footed by the Ghanaian's penalty and wild celebrations ensued among Villa's travelling support of more than 4,000.
Reading manager Jaap Stam:
"I think people should look at that game again. How I look at it is only one team was trying to play football and it was us.
"Fair play, how Aston Villa played, it got them a result and we know they're a quality team that can create chances and make it difficult for you.
"But, we didn't create a lot of chances in the first half. That's also because the opposition sat deep and waited for us to make mistakes and play on the counter-attack.
"You need to be patient in the game - how you play and also how the opposition play. In the second half, they started to press us higher up the pitch and spaces opened up.
"The only thing I can say that we can do better is we can be more decisive defensively, winning that first ball instead of the second one."
Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce told BBC WM:
"I have to pay special mention to the supporters in the last 10 minutes. They breathed life into the lads.
"For a club that's been in trouble, over the past couple of years in particular, to have 5,000 fans at Reading on a Tuesday night is remarkable.
"It's nice to win a game late on. The previous management lost 10 points from goals conceded in the last few minutes of games. If they hadn't done, I probably wouldn't be here.
"I've been given the privilege to manage this club and I've now got to do my best to turn this juggernaut around.
"Let's hope this can be the first of a few wins and we can get this season back up and running again."
Match ends, Reading 1, Aston Villa 2.
Second Half ends, Reading 1, Aston Villa 2.
Attempt missed. Garath McCleary (Reading) right footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Yann Kermorgant.
Garath McCleary (Reading) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Garath McCleary (Reading).
Jordan Ayew (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Substitution, Reading. Danzell Gravenberch replaces George Evans.
Goal!  Reading 1, Aston Villa 2. Jordan Ayew (Aston Villa) converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the bottom right corner.
Penalty conceded by Liam Moore (Reading) after a foul in the penalty area.
Penalty Aston Villa. Jordan Ayew draws a foul in the penalty area.
Foul by Garath McCleary (Reading).
Jordan Amavi (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Corner,  Aston Villa. Conceded by Chris Gunter.
Substitution, Aston Villa. Ross McCormack replaces Jonathan Kodjia.
Corner,  Reading. Conceded by Gary Gardner.
Alan Hutton (Aston Villa) is shown the yellow card.
Roy Beerens (Reading) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Alan Hutton (Aston Villa).
Substitution, Aston Villa. Jordan Ayew replaces Rudy Gestede.
Substitution, Aston Villa. Jordan Amavi replaces Aly Cissokho.
Attempt saved. George Evans (Reading) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top left corner. Assisted by Roy Beerens with a cross.
Garath McCleary (Reading) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Albert Adomah (Aston Villa).
Garath McCleary (Reading) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Aly Cissokho (Aston Villa).
Attempt missed. Jonathan Kodjia (Aston Villa) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses the top right corner.
Offside, Reading. Garath McCleary tries a through ball, but John Swift is caught offside.
Attempt saved. Garath McCleary (Reading) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Roy Beerens.
Attempt missed. Leandro Bacuna (Aston Villa) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left from a direct free kick.
Foul by Liam Moore (Reading).
Rudy Gestede (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Attempt missed. Yann Kermorgant (Reading) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Tyler Blackett with a cross.
Attempt saved. Leandro Bacuna (Aston Villa) left footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Rudy Gestede.
Delay over. They are ready to continue.
Delay in match Garath McCleary (Reading) because of an injury.
Offside, Aston Villa. Rudy Gestede tries a through ball, but Leandro Bacuna is caught offside.
Attempt blocked. Gary Gardner (Aston Villa) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Jonathan Kodjia.
Attempt saved. Yann Kermorgant (Reading) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top right corner. Assisted by Garath McCleary with a cross.
Corner,  Reading. Conceded by Rudy Gestede.
Attempt blocked. Joey van den Berg (Reading) left footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.


Manager Scott Ruscoe hopes The New Saints can overhaul Rijeka in Tuesday's Champions League second qualifying round, second-leg tie.

The Welsh champions would cause a major upset if they overturned the Croatian side's 2-0 lead.
"We've got to grow into the game, not throw everything at them early on because if we concede an away goal the tie is near-enough over," said Ruscoe.
"Hopefully we can get that goal in front and put them under pressure."
Rijeka ended Dinamo Zagreb's run of 11 Croatian league titles last season.
TNS overcame Europa FC in the first round - where Rijeka had a bye - after a thrilling extra-time win against the Gibraltar champions.
Ruscoe also hopes the unfamiliar surroundings and artificial pitch will unsettle the visitors.
"We're playing on 3G as well, a small changing room at a stadium that doesn't have that atmosphere - it's all different to what they're used to," said Ruscoe.
"All these things possibly go in our favour."


Film star Johnny Depp and his actress wife Amber Heard are to divorce, US court documents have revealed.

Heard, 30, filed for divorce in Los Angeles Superior Court citing irreconcilable differences.
They married 15 months ago and have no children.
They have recently been embroiled in a legal case in Australia after Heard took two dogs into the country illegally. She pleaded guilty in April to a charge of falsifying documents.
Depp, 52, and Heard met while co-starring in the 2011 film The Rum Diary.
In the court papers, Texan-born Heard listed the separation date as Sunday.
Celebrity news website TMZ reported that Depp had asked a judge to reject Heard's claim for spousal support.
The split comes days after the death of Depp's mother. His latest film, Alice Through the Looking Glass, is due to be released on Friday.
The Australian court case started last year when Heard brought two dogs into the country where her husband was filming the latest movie in the Pirates of the Caribbean series.
When the case was settled, the couple released a video apology expressing remorse and advising travellers to respect Australian quarantine laws.
However, Australia's Deputy PM Barnaby Joyce had threatened to have the dogs put down, triggering a war of words with Depp that lasted for months.
The actor recently said on a US TV show that Mr Joyce looks "somehow inbred with a tomato".
Mr Joyce responded by saying he was "pulling strings" in Johnny Depp's head, like film villain Hannibal Lecter.


A World War Two bomb containing 290lb (131kg) of "high explosives" has been found in Portsmouth harbour.

The ordnance was discovered by a dredger in the water at about 03:00 GMT, the Royal Navy said.
Specialist divers at the scene said the bomb posed a "very serious threat". It was towed out to sea and detonated.
All ferries were stopped and trains between Portsmouth and Southsea station and Portsmouth Harbour were suspended, but have since started running again.
There were also extensive road closures in the area, affecting access to Gunwharf Quays.
Latest updates on the bomb discovery and other stories from Hampshire and Dorset
How dangerous are unexploded bombs?
The Royal Navy said the device, believed to be a German SC250 that weighs 500lb (227kg), was removed from the harbour before being "safely" blown up in the sea off the Isle of Wight.
Lt Mike St Pierre, the officer leading the bomb disposal team, had said: "Despite being old, these devices can pose a very serious threat."
Hampshire Constabulary said it had "activated a pre-arranged multi-agency plan" with Ministry of Defence Police, the Royal Navy, Portsmouth City Council and other organisations.
"Our priority is to ensure public safety and minimise community disruption while the ordnance is detonated by the Royal Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal," the force said.
It advised residents to stay in their homes, open the windows and move away from the outer walls.
Dredging is being carried out to deepen and widen a four-mile (7km) channel to allow the the navy's new 65,000-tonne aircraft carriers to dock.
Several devices have been found in the harbour since work started in September.
The most recent discovery was a British-made Armstrong Whitworth device found in the early hours of Friday morning, the Royal Navy has said.


A pedestrian is being treated for a head injury after he was hit by a taxi in Inverness.

The man, who was in his 20s, was taken to Raigmore Hospital following the incident but the extent of his injuries were unclear.
He was hit by the VW Passat on Tower Road, close to the junction with Murray Road, at 06:20.
Police investigating the crash closed Tower Road between Barn Church Road and Murray Road for several hours.
The male driver and passengers in the Passat were not injured.


The UK's largest tropical reef has been devastated in the global bleaching event now under way.

Up to 85% of the corals in the Chagos Marine Reserve of the British Indian Ocean Territory are estimated to have been damaged or killed in the event.
Scientists say the conditions there are worse than in 1998 - the last major bleaching occurrence.
The problem is caused by anomalously warm water, which prompts the coral polyps to eject their symbiotic algae.
This drains them of their colour and is fatal unless conditions are reversed in a reasonably short time.
Unfortunately for the Chagos, the water has been persistently warm for many months.
"In 1998, the temperature that killed all the corals was probably about 29.5C. Last year, in April, at the beginning of the latest bleaching event, it was 30.5C and down to 25m. And this year scientists have been out and it's the same again," said Prof Charles Sheppard, the chair of the Chagos Conservation Trust.
Prof Heather Koldewey, from the Zoological Society of London and a CCT Trustee, led the expedition. She described what she saw as shocking: "I was there two years ago and it's always an absolute joy to go diving in Chagos because you really get to see what a reef should look like - rich, living corals with abundant fish and other marine life at densities you just don't get in other places. This was very depressing."
Bleaching is happening globally on a huge scale because of the El Nino phenomenon, which sees surface water temperatures spike in many ocean regions.
Reports in the past couple of weeks have highlighted the damage to the famous reefs off Australia and the Maldives.
The big question now is how well Chagos will recover when conditions calm down, which they should do as the El Nino subsides.
The reserve successfully bounced back after 1998, principally say the scientists because it is normally such a pristine environment.
Controversially, the Chagos Archipelago has been maintained relatively population free since the late 1960s, but this has had the effect of limiting the stress factors that can weaken corals.
"This is what makes Chagos such an important reference site for corals worldwide," explained Prof Koldewey.
"This is not an oil spill, this is not coastal pollution, sewage, or overfishing or siltation. If anywhere can bounce back, it is the Chagos Archipelago, and I hold on to that positive point of view."
Prof Sheppard said the hope would be that juveniles in deeper, cooler water will come up to re-invade the reef and re-establish communities.
The Chagos Marine Reserve was established in 2010 and covers an area of 640,000 square kilometres - more than twice the area of the UK.
The zone covered by reef is estimated to be about 60,000-80,000 square km.
Biodiversity catalogued in the reserve includes - in addition to the corals - more than 1,000 species of fish; endangered green and hawksbill turtles; the world's biggest land crab, the metre-spanning coconut crab; and breeding colonies of terns and shearwaters.
Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos


People in Lincoln could soon be banned from taking legal highs.

A proposal to stop the use of the substances in public places under a Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) is expected to be approved on Monday evening.
The ban would be the first of its kind in the country.
But Jamie, who has sent a petition to the Prime Minister asking for a clamp down on legal highs in the UK, told Newsbeat more should be done.
He thinks the rules should go further and wants head shops, which sell legal highs, to be closed down.
"It's just the advertising it gets. You walk down the high street and there's 10-year-old kids walking down the street and there's a big pipe in a shop window. What message does that send out?"
The reason the government struggle to make legal highs illegal is because as soon as they ban one substance a few chemicals are changed and it is rebranded as a whole new product.
Lincoln's new rules are being suggested as a replacement of Designated Public Place Orders, which prevent alcohol consumption under certain circumstances.
"You wouldn't have noticed [legal high use in the city] five years ago," said Jamie.
"But more recently you can see people just staggering up and down the high street almost like zombies - absolutely off their face."
He took legal highs once but says they have had a much worse affect on some of his friends.
"A few people I did know have carried on doing it and I've watched them become homeless and they look nothing like they used to.
"They're just staggering up the high street, they sleep on the streets now, under bridges."
Sam Barstow, Lincoln's service manager for public protection and anti-social behaviour, said: "The main difference between the existing powers and this new proposal is that it gives us the ability to tackle on-street alcohol consumption and the use of so-called legal highs.
"The Designated Public Place Order required police to be satisfied consumption of the alcohol would lead to anti-social behaviour, which led to difficulties in enforcement.
"The new order would be a complete ban on consuming both alcohol and legal highs in the city centre."
Legal highs are substances which produce the same, or similar effects, to drugs such as cocaine and ecstasy, but are not controlled under the Misuse of Drugs Act.
In many cases, they are designed to mimic class A drugs, but are structurally different enough to avoid being classified as illegal substances, so it is legal to possess and use them.
The latest figures from the Centre for Social Justice (CJS) show the number of police incidents involving legal highs have increased in many parts of England since 2010.
The number of incidents soared across 16 police forces that responded to a freedom of information request by the think-tank.
Of those asked, Lincolnshire police recorded the highest rate of police incidents involving legal highs in 2014 with 820.
The second highest was South Yorkshire with 465 and West Yorkshire's 324 was third highest.
The CSJ has called for a robust response from the Government, including new police powers to close shops that persist in selling legal highs.
It also claims the number of deaths associated with the use of legal highs increased from 12 in 2009 to 97 in 2012 in England and that the UK has the highest number of legal highs users amongst young people in Europe.
"As well as posing worrying health risks, these figures suggest legal highs are placing an increasing burden on public services," said senior CSJ researcher Rupert Oldham-Reid.
"It is too easy for people to walk into high street shops and buy these drugs - many of them as dangerous as class A substances.
"If we want to start responding to the problems caused by 'legal highs' we need to clamp down on those making a living out of selling them."
The CSJ wants the Government to implement legislation similar to a scheme run in Ireland, where authorities slashed the number of 'head shops' from more than 100 to less than 10.
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Leaders Crusaders will aim to stay in firm control of the Irish Premiership title race by beating in-form Glenavon in Friday night's round of games.

The Crues lead second-placed Linfield by six points and also have a game in hand on the Blues.
Craig McClean is available again for the Crues after a ban but Jordan Forsythe could again be ruled out.
Glenavon, who have only lost once in 12 games, will be without suspended Rhys Marshall and Simon Kelly.
Both are serving one-match bans while manager Gary Hamilton is also considering giving an evening off to Ciaran Martyn and Kris Lindsay.
There's live coverage of the four Premiership games on Friday's Sportsound special on BBC Radio Ulster Medium Wave, presented by Joel Taggart.
Our coverage will include the battle between leaders Crusaders and in-form Glenavon at Seaview.
Sportsound on BBC Radio Ulster 1341 MW from 19:30 GMT.
Martyn has only recently returned to action after a period out because of injury and Hamilton is wary about risking the player on the synthetic Seaview surface.
Lindsay may also be excused for similar reasons as he has been bothered by a knee injury in recent weeks.
On the plus side, Conor Dillon is expected to be available for Glenavon despite suffering from a chest infection earlier this week while Mark Sykes appears to have recovered from a dead leg sustained in the impressive 4-1 Irish Cup win over Glentoran last weekend.
After their 7-0 cup demolition of Armagh City last week, Linfield will aim to account for a Portadown side that have lost their last six Premiership games.
However, the Ports did beat Coleraine in the Irish Cup last weekend and they already have a Premiership victory over the Blues at Shamrock Park this season.
Coleraine will hope to get back to winning ways after four successive defeats when they travel to face Ballymena United in a derby encounter.
The Braidmen will be without suspended pair Nathan Hanley and Johnny Taylor.
Friday's other game sees bottom club Warrenpoint Town aiming for a fourth successive Premiership win when they host fellow strugglers Ballinamallard United.
In all, Warrenpoint are unbeaten in their last six Premiership games after earning draws against Glenavon, Carrick Rangers and Cliftonville prior to their wins over Coleraine, Portadown and Glenavon.
Ballinamallard are only four points ahead of Warrenpoint in ninth place altough Whitey Anderson's side did beat Ballymena in their last Premiership game on 30 January.
Danske Bank Premiership
Friday 12 February - 19:45 GMT kick-off unless stated
Ballymena Utd v Coleraine
Crusaders v Glenavon
Portadown v Linfield
Warrenpoint Town v Ballinamallard United - 20:00 GMT


Thieves have made off with a caravan valued at about £12,000 from a driveway outside a house in Gretna.

It was taken some time overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday from a property in Canberra Road.
The caravan, a Hobby-make, is described as being about 24ft long, with twin axles and has black decals down each side depicting mountain ranges.
Anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area has been asked to contact the police.


Firms should be flexible with staffing during the Euro 2016 football tournament, which begins on 10 June, the conciliation service Acas says.

It has published a set of guidelines to prevent disputes arising if staff want to watch their team in the competition.
Acas said firms should have agreements in place to cover requests for time off, website use during working hours, or watching TV during the tournament.
Some games, including Wales v England, are being played in the daytime.
Euro 2016: Everything you need to know in 90 seconds
Sir Brendan Barber, who chairs Acas, said: "The Euro 2016 tournament is an exciting event for many football fans but staff should avoid getting a red card for unreasonable demands or behaviour in the workplace during this period.
"Many businesses need to maintain a certain staffing level in order to survive. Employers should have a set of simple workplace agreements in place before kick off to help ensure their businesses remain productive whilst keeping staff happy too."
Acas said employees and employers should discuss time off well in advance. Another possible option is to have a more flexible working day, with staff starting work later or finishing early and then agreeing when this time can be made up.
Employers could also allow staff to take a break during match times, it was suggested.
It is the first time Wales and Northern Ireland have qualified for the tournament.
Many of the games, being held in France, have evening kick offs but some - including the game between England and Wales - start in the early afternoon.
Sir Brendan said staff may also need to be reminded about the companies' attitude to being under the influence of alcohol or using social media whilst at work.


British talent is expected to figure strongly when the Oscar nominations are announced later.

Following his Golden Globes triumph, Eddie Redmayne is expected to get a best actor nod for Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything.
Other British acting talent in the mix could include Benedict Cumberbatch, David Oyelowo, Felicity Jones, Rosamund Pike and Keira Knightley.
The shortlists are revealed in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, at 1330 GMT.
Under the current voting system, the best picture category could have anything between five and 10 films. For each of the last three years, nine films have made the cut.
The shortlist is likely to include dark satire Birdman, coming-of-age drama Boyhood, quirky comedy The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Theory of Everything and another British biopic, The Imitation Game.
Other films jostling for position include civil rights story Selma, jazz drumming indie hit Whiplash, Iraq war thriller American Sniper and wrestling drama Foxcatcher.
Caroline Frost, entertainment editor of The Huffington Post UK, says this year looks set to be a tight race, with some casualties among the early favourites.
"The whole vibe has changed going into awards season," she says.
"Films that people thought would have been shoo-ins - like Interstellar, Unbroken or Selma - set awards bells clanging.
"But instead more interesting, idiosyncratic films, like Boyhood, Birdman and The Grand Budapest Hotel, have put their noses in front."
Both Boyhood and The Grand Budapest Hotel were released in the first half of 2014 - long before the autumn/winter months, when movie bosses like to bring out their awards hopefuls.
"The fact that Boyhood and Grand Budapest came out so early in 2014 may give studio execs pause for thought about their distribution model," observes Frost.
"Maybe it's not such a guaranteed goal-scorer to save up your best films for November or December, because they get caught in the rush.
"As audiences and voters, we are so aware of being sold products these days that we feel warm towards films that we discover for ourselves, that don't have that awards ribbon wrapped round them."
In the acting categories, Redmayne is likely to find himself up against his friend and fellow Brit Cumberbatch, who plays computer pioneer Alan Turing in WW2 drama The Imitation Game.
Perhaps his biggest challenger will be Michael Keaton, who has resurrected his career in surreal dark comedy Birdman in the role of a washed-up superhero actor who is starring in a play on Broadway.
Both Redmayne and Keaton won Golden Globes for their roles this week in separate categories. At the Oscars they will be going head to head.
Other actors who could make the shortlist include David Oyelowo (Selma), Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler), Bradley Cooper (American Sniper) and Steve Carell (Foxcatcher).
Another Golden Globe winner hoping for Oscar success is Julianne Moore, who plays a linguistics professor diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's in Still Alice. Her powerful performance has made her the bookmakers' favourite to win an Oscar for best actress.
Her rivals could include Redmayne's co-star Felicity Jones, Gone Girl's Rosamund Pike and Reese Witherspoon, who plays a woman who undertakes a gruelling hike in Wild.
There's much speculation that Jennifer Aniston could appear on the shortlist for her role as a woman struggling with prescription painkiller addiction in Cake.
"If Jennifer Aniston has ever had a chance of winning an Oscar, it's got to be this year," says Frost.
"But I think it's Julianne Moore's year, because she's never won an Oscar before and it's her time, as they say, and she's done something worthy of it."
In the supporting actress field, Golden Globe winner Patricia Arquette (Boyhood) is almost guaranteed a nod, alongside Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game) and Birdman's Emma Stone.
If Meryl Streep makes the list for her turn as a fairytale witch in musical Into the Woods, it would be her 19th acting nomination - breaking her own Oscar record.
Expect to see JK Simmons, who plays a terrifying music teacher in Whiplash, in the mix for best supporting actor alongside the likes of Edward Norton (Birdman) and Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher).
After storming the Baftas with 11 nominations last week, though, will The Grand Budapest Hotel do as well with Academy voters?
"It will probably do very well," writes The Hollywood Reporter's Oscars analyst Scott Feinberg. "But I'm not sure that it will resonate nearly as much with the American-heavy Academy as it has with voters abroad.
"It has a very particular style and dry sensibility that I think Europeans appreciate more than Americans."
Feinberg thinks Richard Linklater's Boyhood is the one to beat in the race for best picture. "Quite simply, it stands out, with its unique narrative, in a year in which few other films do, and I'd be very surprised if its momentum stops anytime soon."
Frost agrees. "This film has been around for 12 years and there won't be a film like this to vote for again, possibly ever. It's a once-in-a-lifetime accomplishment."
The nominations in all 24 Oscar categories will be announced by actor Chris Pine, Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs and directors Alfonso Cuaron and JJ Abrams, on 15 January.
The two-part live news conference at the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theatre in Beverly Hills will be streamed live on the BBC News website.
The Oscars ceremony takes place in Hollywood's Dolby Theatre on 22 February.


Groups offering mental-health support to children and young people are to receive a multi-million-pound funding boost from April, the government says.

The organisations will gain some £4.8m in top-up grants in 2015-16.
This is the first time they have been eligible for a share of the government's £25m voluntary and community sector grants.
Young Minds chief executive Sarah Brennan said the windfall would help it provide "a vital lifeline" to families.
The charity had been awarded £300,000 to support its helpline for parents "struggling to support their children's mental health", Ms Brennan said.
Young Minds says demand for the helpline, which depends on donations, is the highest it has ever been.
The grants are designed to support the work of organisations that make a difference to children and their families.
Mental-health projects were included for the first time, with ministers favouring projects designed to improve:
Successful bids include:
The government says the move is part of a new action plan on mental health in schools.
With one in 10 children having a diagnosable mental-health disorder, about three in every classroom, the government says it is time for a "step change" in support.
It also wants more emphasis on helping all children to develop a better understanding of mental-health problems to help tackle the stigma.
Measures include:
Education Secretary Nicky Morgan said: "As a mum myself, I know growing up today is no easy task.
"Young people are under more pressure than ever before, in ways that are unimaginable to my generation.
"This is driven home to me every week when I visit schools across the country and talk to pupils about the issues affecting them, mental health comes up time and time again.
"There must be no trade-off between learning about mental health and academic success.
"By improving teaching on this subject, we will help young people make sense of mental-health issues and teach them how to keep themselves and others healthy."
Overall some 94 organisations will receive grants for projects, including:
The grants would supplement existing government funding, the Department for Education said.


Google has launched its new chat app with weaker privacy protection measures than previously promised.

The company had originally said conversations within Allo would be only temporarily stored on its servers, restricting the authorities' ability to request access.
However, the Verge news site revealed that Google now holds on to the data unless users take active measures to stop it.
Google has confirmed the U-turn.
Privacy campaigners say the public must be kept informed about how their records are handled.
"It's important that citizens are given enough information about what will happen to their data for them make an informed choice about whether or not they want to use this service," said Daniel Nesbitt, research director at Big Brother Watch.
"This includes who may be able to access it and where the data will be stored".
Allo was first announced at the Google IO event in May.
At the time, it said chat records would be "transiently" stored on its servers.
This was required to provide the app's standout feature - the inclusion of the Google Assistant, a tool that provides context-relevant suggestions.
For example, if two people are discussing Italian food, the Assistant can be asked within the conversation to give details of nearby restaurants or how to prepare a dish.
Google's support documents state that a user can opt to wipe their chat history and add that it holds onto people's data to provide them with "a more personalised experience".
But when first asked, the firm was unable to clarify whether it had abandoned plans to delete chats without being prompted.
Allo itself handled privacy queries by providing a link to the Verge.
However, a spokeswoman later confirmed the change of policy.
"We've given users transparency and control over their data in Google Allo," she told the BBC.
"Our approach is simple - your chat history is saved for you until you choose to delete it. You can delete single messages or entire conversations."
Allo does offer an Incognito mode -  which encrypts the chats in a form that prevents the Assistant listening in or the authorities being able to get an unscrambled copy - but this is not enabled by default.
That contrasts with the approach of Whatsapp, which holds on to messages only until they have been delivered, and Telegram and Apple's iMessage, which promise never to scan users' communications.
"Google has a challenge as there are already a lot of big players with chat apps with very established audiences," said Jack Kent, from the IHS Technology consultancy.
"With messaging it's not just about acquiring one user, it's about acquiring the network of users.
"Google is trying to do that by offering a smarter messaging experience, and to do that it needs the data to learn about its users.
"But it needs to be careful about how it communicates that."


A former Met police officer has been jailed for asking a 14-year-old girl to perform a sex act during a Skype call.

Alistair Leiper, of Tooting, had a series of online video chats with two teenagers between December 2013 and April 2014, the court heard.
The 37 year old admitted three counts of attempting to engage in sexual activity in the presence of a child and one of causing or inciting a child to engage in sexual activity.
He was jailed for two years.
Judge Alistair McCreath said Leiper's actions had "stained" his otherwise "exemplary" reputation.
Southwark Crown Court heard the former police constable pretended to be a teenager and asked his victim her age, whether she liked "older boys" and if she "was a virgin".
Defending, Edmund Gritt said there was "no grooming of these victims" and there was "no building of an apparent false friendship or trust".
He was sentenced to two years' imprisonment for inciting a child to engage in sexual activity and 12 months, to run concurrently, for attempting to engage in sexual activity in the presence of a child.
He was also given a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for five years and placed on the sexual offenders register for 10 years.
Leiper has been dismissed from the Met.


Now that the UK has officially started the process for the UK to leave the European Union (EU), politicians are having many important conversations about what happens next.

Leaders need to decide how the UK will work with other EU countries in the future, and how things like trade and immigration will work.
As part of these discussions, a place called Gibraltar is being talked about.
Read on to find out more about Gibraltar and why it is significant in politicians' conversations about Brexit.
Gibraltar is a place in Europe, on the south coast of Spain.
Even though it is on land joined to Spain, it is part of Britain. This means it is what is called a British overseas territory.
It has someone called a chief minister who is responsible for governing it and deciding how things like tax will work.
The UK government is in charge of how Gibraltar deals with other countries and how it is defended.
Even though it is quite small, it is an important place. There is a military base there, as well as a port and an airstrip.
Gibraltar is being talked about because - as part of Britain - Brexit (when Britain exits the EU) is going to affect it.
Gibraltar has been ruled by Britain for just over 300 years.
Spain and Britain have argued for many years about who Gibraltar should belong to.
This is called a row about sovereignty - this means an argument about which country should be in charge of a place.
There was a vote in 2002 about whether or not Britain and Spain should share Gibraltar. But almost everyone (99% of people living in Gibraltar) said they didn't want that to happen, so Gibraltar remains a part of Britain.
Its chief minister Fabian Picardo has said: "Gibraltar belongs to the Gibraltarians and we want to stay British."
So now that the UK is leaving the EU, this means that Gibraltar will no longer be a part of the EU either.
Discussions need to take place about what relationship Gibraltar will have with other EU countries, like Spain, which it is right next to.
One of the main issues that will affect Gibraltar is about its border, which it shares with Spain.
The EU has also just said that Brexit decisions affecting Gibraltar would be run past the Spanish government. The UK doesn't agree with Spain having the final say.
So the relationship between the UK, Spain, Gibraltar and the EU is making the headlines.
We do not know yet.
The EU has said that the Spanish government would be consulted about Brexit decisions around Gibraltar.
But the UK government doesn't think Spain should have a say, because Britain is in charge of what happens with Gibraltar.
Even though people in Gibraltar voted strongly to stay in the EU in 2016, they voted strongly to carry on being part of the UK in 2002.
The UK government has said it will protect Gibraltar and work closely with it to make sure it gets the best possible outcome from Brexit.
The Prime Minister Theresa May has also said that discussions about who Gibraltar belongs to will not be part of the Brexit conversations.


The Social Democratic and Labour Party's Alasdair McDonnell looks likely to face a challenge to his leadership.

The BBC understands at least five branches of the party have nominated Colum Eastwood to stand against him at the party conference in November.
Sources said Mr Eastwood, 32, will spend the weekend deciding what to do but supporters expect him to run for the leadership.
Mr Eastwood is the SDLP's youngest MLA and a former Mayor of Derry.
In 2012, the Foyle MLA faced controversy after carrying the coffin of a friend who was a former member of the Official IRA and the INLA.
Dr McDonnell, 65,  was elected SDLP leader in November 2011.
On Thursday, Dr McDonnell accused the Democratic Unionist Party of not wanting to work with Catholics and said Sinn FÃ©in "can't tell the truth" about the IRA.
Analysis Gareth Gordon BBC NI political correspondent
The deadline for a potential challenge expired at 17:00 BST on Friday.
Normally the party leader is returned unopposed at each party conference. But not this year.
At least five branches of the SDLP have nominated Foyle MLA Colum Eastwood.
Dr McDonnell has faced calls to step down before, notably from the man who held the post before him, Mark Durkan.
Now it looks like all of Dr McDonnell's famous fighting qualities are to be tested like never before.
He defended his comments in an interview with the BBC on Friday.
He also said he did not expect to be challenged.
"I don't expect to face a challenge, but if there's a challenge, I'll face it," he said.
"I have a very robust programme flowing at the moment, of renewal in the party and it's working and people are up for it and we're bringing in a lot of new members and a lot of new people.
"We've a whole spate of new people proposing to go forward for the assembly. We brought in a fantastic spate of people for the council elections last year so I will stand on my record and it's democracy if somebody wants to come forward.
"I will win, yes. I will stand on my record. I have a job to complete and I will complete it."
Dr McDonnell has been the South Belfast MP since May 2005 and an MLA since 1998.
Meanwhile, the South Belfast MLA Fearghal McKinney is expected to make a bid for the deputy leader's post. It is currently held by Dolores Kelly.
The former reporter replaced Connall McDevitt who stood down in 2013 and sits on a number of Stormont scrutiny committees, including health and justice.
Mr McKinney is a close ally of Dr McDonnell.
Like the leadership contender, he has to secure nominations from at least five local branches.


A cheating US husband has been charged with killing his wife after police said data from her wearable fitness tracker contradicted his version of events.

Richard Dabate, 40, claimed to have seen Connie Dabate shot to death more than an hour before her Fitbit device recorded her last movements.
He told detectives that she was killed by a home intruder in the US state of Connecticut on 23 December 2015.
But police say her electronic device tells a different story.
Mr Dabate was charged this month with murder, tampering with physical evidence and making false statements about his 39-year-old wife's death.
Police say he initially told them he had just returned home at around 09:00 after dropping off his two sons when he was attacked by a home intruder.
He claimed the perpetrator was a "tall, obese man" with a deep voice like actor Vin Diesel's and wearing "camouflage and a mask", according to an arrest warrant.
The accused said a .357 revolver registered in his name was used by the purported attacker to shoot Mrs Dabate.
The victim, a pharmaceutical representative, was shot twice, once in the back of her head, with the pistol that her husband had purchased two months earlier, say prosecutors.
Mr Dabate, a computer technician, claimed the home intruder then tied him up after a struggle.
Police found Mr Dabate with an arm and leg bound by zip ties to a chair in the kitchen at the crime scene.
He had what police described as superficial knife wounds.
Investigators say physical evidence showed no sign of the struggle described by Mr Dabate.
Data found on a Fitbit that Mrs Dabate had worn for an exercise class that morning shows she did not take her last movements until 10:05, more than an hour after her husband claimed to watch her die.
Also, police sniffer dogs picked up no scent of other people in the house in the hours before Mrs Dabate's death.
Her husband was in a relationship with another woman, who was expecting his baby - which detectives suspect as a motive for the attack.
According to investigators, Mr Dabate had texted his wife a year before her death saying: "I want a divorce."
Bank statements obtained by the Hartford Courant newspaper showed credit card charges from hotels and bouquets of flowers for his girlfriend, as well as strip clubs.
The accused is currently not in custody after posting bail of $1m.
His next trial date is scheduled for 28 April.
Mr Dabate's lawyer says his client is innocent.


The All Blacks have been welcomed home to New Zealand as heroes, after winning the Rugby World Cup on Saturday.

Thousands turned up on Auckland's streets and in Victoria Park to meet the players, who touched down in the city on Wednesday.


Sam Tomkins scored a try on his Wigan Warriors return but they lost to Hull FC, who moved level on points with Super League leaders Warrington.

Marc Sneyd put Hull ahead while Steve Michaels and Scott Taylor helped them to a 14-0 lead within 15 minutes.
Oliver Gildart and John Bateman scored for the hosts before Tomkins went over to pull Wigan to within two points.
But Jamie Shaul and Fetuli Talanoa both went over to end Wigan's fightback and seal a 10th Super League win of 2016.
The result, Hull's ninth win in 10 games, took the Black and Whites above Catalans and level on 20 points with Warrington, who have played a game fewer.
Wigan, who clawed their way back to 18-16 down prior to Shaul's try, slipped to their fifth defeat of the season and drop a place to fifth after St Helens beat Salford 34-20.
England international Tomkins started on the bench and came on before the break to make his first appearance for Wigan since helping them to victory in the 2013 Grand Final against Warrington.
The 27-year-old full-back rejoined the club for the 2016 season after two years with NRL side New Zealand Warriors, but had not played since suffering knee ligament damage while playing against West Tigers last August.
Wigan Warriors boss Shaun Wane told Sky Sports:
"We started poor. We got out-muscled and they ran a bit harder than us. They're far bigger than us, we're a detailed team and our detail wasn't there and because of that we gave penalties away.
"I'm disappointed with our performance. We had a chance to get back into the game in the second half and we just threw it away. We didn't give ourselves a chance to win.
"We got what we deserved. I wish they had beat us by more because we were miles off."
Hull FC coach Lee Radford:
"We knew we had to be right on our game to get anything out of tonight and thankfully we were.
"In the second half we were a bit reserved in how we were playing. We went into our shell and it worked against us - it always does when you play a team like that.
"They've been an unbelievably successful club over the last five or six years and you could see why. I thought Bateman for them was absolutely outstanding tonight.
"We just got to make sure we don't get carried away, stay grounded and keep working hard. That's what got us the results we have."
Wigan: Sarginson; Charnley, Gildart, Bateman, Manfredi; Williams, Smith; Crosby, Powell, Mossop, J Tomkins, Isa, O'Loughlin.
Replacements: S Tomkins, Clubb, Tautai, Sutton.
Hull FC: Shaul; Michaels, Fonua, Yeaman, Talanoa; Pryce, Sneyd; Taylor, Houghton, Watts, Minichiello, Washbrook, Ellis.
Replacements: Green, Thompson, Manu, Bowden.
Referee: Ben Thaler
Attendance: 15,083


Progress on closing the gap between rich and poor pupils has not moved fast or far enough to tackle the gulf within a divided Britain, a report says.

The Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission says the development gap between rich and poor five-year-olds must halve for a more equal society.
It notes that only half the poorest children are deemed ready for school compared to two-thirds of others.
The poorest pupils are still lagging behind by the time they take GCSEs.
The commission notes the poorest pupils are still half as likely to get five good GCSEs as their wealthier peers.
This, in turn, affects their chances of going to more selective universities, the report says.
The commission, chaired by Alan Milburn, calls for more stretching objectives for the early years and a new national definition of school readiness.
This would encourage early years staff to focus more on preparing young children for school, it says.
Launching his annual report on the state of the nation, Mr Milburn said: "The gap between rhetoric and reality has to be closed if the prime minister's One Nation objective is to be realised.
"Current signs of progress do not go nearly far or fast enough to address the gulf between the divided Britain of the present and the One Nation Britain we aspire to become."
His report calls for a "major new focus" on narrowing the attainment gap and highlights how low ability wealthy children often overtake their brighter, poorer peers during school.
The commission also calls for a rethink of teacher pay and the funding of teacher training.
It argues that in order to attract quality graduates "new teacher pay should be improved to compete with other graduate employees".
Fees for initial teacher training should be scrapped and new incentives should be introduced to encourage teachers to move to challenging schools on a trial basis, it suggests.
The report claims there is a growing social divide by income and by class.
"Looking at earnings, the income share of the top 10% has increased from 28% to 39% since 1979, while the income share of the top 1% has more than doubled from 6% to 13% over the same time period," it says.
It adds: "At the very bottom of society there are more than one million children living a life of persistent poverty.
"They are excluded from sharing in the many opportunities that life in modern Britain affords."
A government spokesman said it was committed to an "all-out assault on poverty".
"Our investment in childcare is helping parents get into work and give their children the best start in life, while the pupil premium and school reforms are ensuring every child gets a good education."
The spokesman said work was the best way out of poverty, adding that the number of workless households was at a record low.
He highlighted plans for the new National Living Wage, three million more apprenticeships by 2020, and the funding of 30 hours of free childcare for working parents each week.
The pupil premium, extra cash targeted through schools at the most disadvantaged children, was also highlighted.
"We are absolutely committed to building one nation where nobody is defined by the circumstances of their birth," said the spokesman.
The Child Poverty Action Group said: "Nine school children in every class of 30 is in poverty now and the projections are bleak, with an extra 1.5 million estimated to be below the poverty line by 2020 on current policies."
Kevin Courtney, deputy general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, said: "Setting targets for narrowing the educational attainment gap without addressing its real causes and providing the resources to tackle those in partnership with schools is an abdication of responsibility.
"Once again schools are being left to pick up the pieces on their own."


Police have released recordings of a suspected burglar phoning for a taxi from the house he had just broken into.

The man dialled two taxi firms from the landline in the house at Wodecroft Road, Luton, but hung up after he was asked for his phone number.
Bedfordshire Police asked anyone who recognised the man's voice to contact them.
A flat-screen television and other electrical items were stolen from the house.
The calls were made in the early hours of Saturday 25 October using a cordless telephone, which was then left on a table in the garden, police said.
The man called two Luton taxi firms which were both dealt with by the same control office.
In the first call, the suspect was asked to leave his landline number, but said he did not know it.
He was then asked to leave his mobile number and he started to, but then stopped, claiming he did not know it.
Police said he then made a second call and got through to the same controller, who explained the office handled calls for more than one taxi firm.
The force hopes the suspect, who almost revealed his mobile phone number, can be identified from the recordings, which were made automatically.
Det Con Scott Hannam said: "We are keen to identify the man as we believe he may have important information which could assist our investigation.
"I would urge anyone who recognises his voice, or for the man himself, to contact police.
"I am also keen to hear from anyone who has any information or saw a large television being carried around this area on the night in question."


A comedian has claimed that he was the first to tell the joke which won Darren Walsh the prize for the funniest gag at this year's Edinburgh Fringe.

A judging panel gave the award to Walsh for the one-liner: "I just deleted all the German names off my phone. It's Hans free."
But fellow comic Pete Cunningham said he had been using the joke in his own routine for many years.
TV channel Dave, which sponsors the award, defended its choice of winner.
A spokeswoman said she was "entirely confident" the award had been given to the rightful recipient.
She added: "The jokes for Dave's Joke of the Fringe are submitted by 10 extremely experienced comedy critics from shows performed at the Edinburgh Fringe.
"Each submission is checked and cross-referenced for originality before being put to a public vote."
Cunningham, who has a Fringe show at the Voodoo Rooms, told BBC Scotland that he and Walsh "go back a few years" and are "always going backwards and forwards with comments and puns about each other's stuff".
The pair had a Twitter exchange in April of this year in which Cunningham tweeted the "Hans free" punchline, which he said he had first used as part of a routine by his Frank Sanazi character about seven or eight years ago.
He added: "Frank Sanazi is my most popular character and has a bit of a cult following.
"I was doing a gag seven or eight years ago - some new material. One of the gags is that I pretend that I have an agent called Harvey Goldberg, because being Frank Sanazi - you see what I mean, having a Jewish agent - that's the joke.
"And I say my agent likes me to take the German names off my phone to make it Hans free.
"Darren has used the punchline for that joke."
Cunningham insisted he "wasn't bitter about it", but that it would be nice to be recognised for telling the joke first.
He added: "There's the famous saying that there are only two or three jokes in the world and they are all sort of spun around but I have been using it for quite a while, an extended version of his gag."
He said he had a "little chat" with Walsh about it, and was "happy for him that he won because he's a nice guy and I love his stuff, but there's a small feeling that I had actually done the gag before".
He claimed: "It wasn't one of the best gags in my show anyway. It's quite ironic that the best gag at the Fringe is one of the weakest gags in my show."


Tammy Abraham scored his 19th goal this season to end Bristol City's eight-game losing run in the Championship with a draw against Sheffield Wednesday.

Fernando Forestieri converted Adam Reach's cross to put the Owls in front, before Lee Tomlin equalised from the spot after he was fouled in the area.
Ross Wallace curled play-off hopefuls Wednesday back ahead after half-time.
But Abraham deflected Joe Bryan's shot in to level for City, who paraded new signing Matty Taylor during the break.
Striker Taylor joined the Robins from local rivals Bristol Rovers earlier on transfer deadline day - but it was Chelsea loanee Abraham who stole the show, again finding the net during an impressive debut season in senior football.
The 19-year-old had already twice been denied by Keiren Westwood before Bryan's shot from the edge of the area cannoned off his midriff to wrong-foot the Owls goalkeeper.
Wednesday looked the more likely to snatch victory in the closing stages, with Tom Lees heading their best opportunity over the crossbar.
But Carlos Carvalhal's side drop to seventh in the table, without a win in their last two matches, while Bristol City move up a place to 20th, three points clear of the relegation places.
Bristol City manager Lee Johnson: "We've shown great character to come from behind twice. The players obviously wanted to get a win, but given the circumstances, it's not a bad point.
"The fans stuck with us and they were brilliant, roaring us on. We had some great chances at 1-1.
"We stood strong though, and earned a point in the end, but the draw means nothing if we don't get a win on Saturday."
Sheffield Wednesday manager Carlos Carvalhal: "We have taken a point, but I cannot say that we achieved it because it should have been more.
"Bristol's second goal was rude. There is no place for it on the training ground and how can you defend against it?
"We wanted three points, but we take one and move on. They didn't create much, but nor did we. It was a game of few chances."
Match ends, Bristol City 2, Sheffield Wednesday 2.
Second Half ends, Bristol City 2, Sheffield Wednesday 2.
Bailey Wright (Bristol City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Atdhe Nuhiu (Sheffield Wednesday).
Attempt missed. Tom Lees (Sheffield Wednesday) header from the centre of the box is just a bit too high. Assisted by Adam Reach with a cross.
Attempt saved. Ross Wallace (Sheffield Wednesday) left footed shot from outside the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Barry Bannan.
Attempt missed. Tom Lees (Sheffield Wednesday) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Ross Wallace with a cross following a corner.
Corner,  Sheffield Wednesday. Conceded by Scott Golbourne.
Foul by Milan Djuric (Bristol City).
Adam Reach (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Aden Flint (Bristol City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Atdhe Nuhiu (Sheffield Wednesday).
Attempt saved. Milan Djuric (Bristol City) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Mark Little.
Attempt missed. Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday) right footed shot from the right side of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Ross Wallace.
Joe Bryan (Bristol City) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Foul by Tom Lees (Sheffield Wednesday).
Substitution, Sheffield Wednesday. Callum McManaman replaces Morgan Fox.
Substitution, Bristol City. Gary O'Neil replaces Lee Tomlin.
Foul by Milan Djuric (Bristol City).
Glenn Loovens (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Bailey Wright (Bristol City).
Atdhe Nuhiu (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Attempt missed. Barry Bannan (Sheffield Wednesday) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right. Assisted by Ross Wallace.
Adam Reach (Sheffield Wednesday) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Offside, Bristol City. Josh Brownhill tries a through ball, but Milan Djuric is caught offside.
Offside, Bristol City. Lee Tomlin tries a through ball, but Tammy Abraham is caught offside.
Attempt missed. Fernando Forestieri (Sheffield Wednesday) header from very close range misses to the left. Assisted by Ross Wallace with a cross following a corner.
Corner,  Sheffield Wednesday. Conceded by Bailey Wright.
Attempt blocked. Ross Wallace (Sheffield Wednesday) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Fernando Forestieri.
Goal!  Bristol City 2, Sheffield Wednesday 2. Tammy Abraham (Bristol City) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Joe Bryan following a corner.
Attempt blocked. Joe Bryan (Bristol City) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Jens Hegeler.
Attempt missed. Aden Flint (Bristol City) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Josh Brownhill with a cross following a corner.
Substitution, Bristol City. Milan Djuric replaces Callum O'Dowda.
Corner,  Bristol City. Conceded by Liam Palmer.
Foul by Callum O'Dowda (Bristol City).
Adam Reach (Sheffield Wednesday) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Aden Flint (Bristol City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Atdhe Nuhiu (Sheffield Wednesday).
Attempt missed. Tammy Abraham (Bristol City) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Callum O'Dowda.
Corner,  Bristol City. Conceded by Adam Reach.


Cancer Research UK is investing £15m in its research hubs in Oxford, Cambridge and Manchester.

The three sites form the charity's first centres tasked with making advances in personalised cancer medicine and early detection research.
Dr Iain Foulkes, executive director for research funding, said: "With these centres the UK goes from strength to strength in supporting the best cancer research in the world."
The centres will receive £5m each.
The new research intends to bridge the gap between laboratory work and the eventual benefits for patients.
Oxford research will focus on less invasive treatments, Cambridge on improving early detection and treatment, and Manchester on personalising surgery and radiotherapy.
Prof Richard Gilbertson, director of the Cambridge Centre, described its new status as a "tremendous honour and exciting opportunity".
Cancer Research UK currently has 15 research centres around the UK.


On Wednesday, 40,000 Verizon workers across six US states went on strike after contract negotiations failed to produce a settlement.

The unions organising the action represent customer service and network technicians.
Verizon called the strike "regrettable" and said it had brought in 10,000 non-union workers.
Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders spoke at a protest in New York in praise of the workers.
He said they were "standing up to this powerful special interest".
The workers are members of the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
CWA representative Bob Master said the new workers would not be able to make up the workload left by those out on strike.
"There's no way that these 10,000 people ... can make up for 40,000 people who have decades of experience [in highly technical jobs]," he said.
The union workers have been without a contract since August and negotiations have stuck on Verizon's plan to cut healthcare and pension benefits over a three-year period.
"It's regrettable that union leaders have called a strike, a move that hurts all of our employees," Marc Reed, Verizon's chief administrative officer, said in a statement.
During the last contract talks in 2011 workers also went out on strike. A deal was eventually reached through mediation.
Verizon said it has asked the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service to step in this time around. Mr Master called that move a "diversionary tactic".
The strike could effect Verizon's television, phone and Fios Internet businesses, is not expected to impact Verizon wireless, which made up 29% of the company's 2015 revenue.


The EU's latest Earth observer, Sentinel-2a, has gone operational.

Users are now able to download its images of the planet, although they will need to register first.
The Sentinel, which has been undergoing in-orbit testing since its launch back in June, views the land surface in optical and infrared light.
Its pictures will be used by scientists to track everything from the growth of megacities to the variable yields of the world's most important food crops.
And researchers will, of course, use 2a's acquisitions prominently in climate studies (examples are being shown at the COP21 talks in Paris).
But the EU's free and open data policy means anyone can now download and play with the images.
And unlike the products from some specialist satellites, which are hard to interpret - the colour views from Sentinel-2a should appeal to a very broad audience.
The European Space Agency (Esa), which manages the satellite for the EU, expects demand to be huge.
Already, many thousands of users have registered to make Sentinel downloads - and these were people who were predominantly after the more complex radar pictures being produced by another spacecraft in the series, Sentinel-1a.
"We expect the demand for all Sentinel data to be unprecedented. It is already unprecedented for us; we've never had so many downloads," said Prof Volker Liebig, the director of Earth observation at Esa.
"It's hard to put a number on what it will be for Sentinel-2a, but it will be in petabytes, for sure."
One petabyte is roughly equivalent to 200,000 commonly used DVDs.
Optical imagery (essentially, what we see with our eyes) is the cornerstone of Earth observation, and increasingly it features in everyday applications on the web and on people's smartphones.
One of the major sources to date of free pictures has been the American Landsat series of spacecraft, which have assembled a continuous record of the world's fluctuating features stretching back more than 40 years.
Sentinel-2a will be complementary, but also more capable - which further suggests demand will be big.
2a's imaging instrument is sensitive across more bands of light (13 multispectral versus eight), allowing it to discern more information about the Earth's surface; and it will "carpet map" a much wider strip of ground (290km versus 185km).
In addition, its colour images have a best resolution of 10m, versus Landsat's 30m.
Sentinel 2a will not be working at full pace straightaway: it is ramping up its coverage of landmasses, however experts have already confirmed that the early products are meeting the required quality.
Further quality improvements are under way. This could take a few months, said Esa mission manager Dr Bianca Hoersch.
"[As] for the user demand, as we see with Sentinel-1, there are more than 14,000 users. I would expect that with Sentinel-2 we will get more users, since the mission data - besides being valuable for operational services and science - is just simply stunning to look at and will attract the broader public.
"Our systems are scalable to absorb increasing demand [and] we are closely monitoring the access performance, e.g. today, the download of a product of about 5GB takes less than 10 minutes."
Anyone thinking of downloading pictures is warned to have plenty of storage. The files are large. Mirror servers are being set up in several countries.
The next Sentinel to be launched in the EU's multi-billion-euro Copernicus Earth observation programme is numbered 3a.
It will focus its gaze more on the oceans. The launch of this platform should take next month.
Even more spacecraft will follow in the coming years.
Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos


Fit-again Niamh Briggs will captain hosts Ireland at next month's Women's World Cup.

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Briggs missed the Six Nations because of a hamstring injury but is named in a squad that includes 12 players with previous World Cup experience.
Claire Molloy, Marie-Louise Reilly and Nora Stapleton will be playing in their third World Cup.
Scrum-half Nicole Cronin, who has played for the Ireland sevens team, is the only uncapped player in the squad.
Ulster players Ashleigh Baxter and Claire McLaughlin are included while Stapleton is joined by fellow Donegal native Larissa Muldoon.
Molloy, Reilly, Stapleton, Ailis Egan, Heather O'Brien, Sophie Spence, Ashleigh Baxter, Paula Fitzpatrick, Alison Miller, Muldoon, Jenny Murphy and Briggs all featured at the 2014 tournament, when Ireland were beaten in the semi-finals by eventual champions England.
England also defeated Ireland in this year's Grand Slam decider in March.
Ireland coach Tom Tierney said the squad had been developed over the past three years with the World Cup in mind.
"As a result of the programme, many players have had the opportunity to prepare for this moment and play international rugby and show their skills at the highest level," said Tierney.
"We have named players who have been here before and are aware of the challenge that lies ahead.
"Then there are a number of players in the squad for whom this will be their first ever World Cup and I am extremely confident they will compete for starting positions throughout the campaign."
Ireland will take on Australia, Japan and France in their World Cup pool with only the winners guaranteed a semi-final place.
The three pool winners will be joined by the best second-placed team in the semi-finals at Kingspan Stadium with the final also taking place at the Ravenhill venue.
"The opportunity to play in a World Cup on home soil is a once in a life time opportunity," added the Ireland coach.
"While we are in a tough pool with Australia, Japan and our Six Nations rivals France, I am sure the players will rise to the occasion in front of their home fans."
Ireland women's World Cup squad
Forwards: Ashleigh Baxter (Cooke/Ulster), Anna Caplice (UL Bohemian/Munster), Ciara Cooney (Railway Union/Leinster), Ailis Egan (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Paula Fitzpatrick (St. Mary's College RFC/Leinster), Ciara Griffin (UL Bohemian/Munster), Leah Lyons (Highfield/Munster), Claire Molloy (Bristol/Connacht), Cliodhna Moloney (Railway Union/Leinster), Heather O'Brien (Highfield/Munster), Ciara O'Connor (Galwegians/Connacht), Ruth O'Reilly (Galwegians/Connacht), Lindsay Peat (Railway Union/Leinster), Marie-Louise Reilly (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Sophie Spence (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
Backs: Niamh Briggs (UL Bohemian/Munster) capt, Eimear Considine (UL Bohemian/Munster), Mairead Coyne (Galwegians/Connacht), Nicole Cronin (UL Bohemian/Munster), Jeamie Deacon (Blackrock College RFC/Leinster), Katie Fitzhenry (Blackrock College RFC/Leinster), Claire McLaughlin (Cooke/Ulster), Alison Miller (Old Belvedere/Connacht), Larissa Muldoon (Railway Union), Jenny Murphy (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Sene Naoupu (Harlequins FC), Nora Stapleton (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Hannah Tyrrell (Old Belvedere/Leinster)


New England head coach Eddie Jones says he will maintain the Rugby Football Union's policy of not picking players based overseas unless there are "exceptional circumstances".

England have not fielded the past two winners of the European Player of the Year award because they play in France.
Toulon's Steffon Armitage won the award in 2014, with Clermont Auvergne's Nick Abendanon doing likewise this year.
"I believe the current laws are the right regulation to have," said Jones.
"I had a good discussion with RFU chief executive Ian Ritchie on that area and I understand."
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 live's Sportsweek, Jones said he had been on "both sides of the fence" having twice worked for Premiership club Saracens.
He added: "I understand the relationship with the RFU. I understand, in terms of the RFU, what they want."
Jones was named as England's first foreign head coach on Friday and will start his role on 1 December.
The 55-year-old Australian has agreed a four-year deal to succeed Stuart Lancaster, who departed in the wake of England's early World Cup exit.
Jones reiterated he plans to speak to captain Chris Robshaw about his position.
"I'll sit down with Chris and have a chat with him," he said.
"I'll see where his head is at, see what he wants to do in the future, and talk about if he meets the right demands of what I want from the captain."
Asked about his reputation for being demanding and a disciplinarian, Jones said: "As you get older, you learn to understand people better.
"You understand what players need. Some players do need to be spoken to harshly whereas others need an arm around the shoulder. You learn to also understand that with your staff.
"Discipline is about understanding what you need to do to win. Every team that wins has discipline so if someone described me as that, I would take that as being fairly positive."
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Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo, who was China's most prominent human rights and democracy advocate, has died aged 61.

The activist had been serving an 11-year prison term for "subversion" and was recently moved to a hospital for treatment for terminal liver cancer.
A university professor turned tireless rights campaigner, Mr Liu was branded a criminal by authorities.
The Nobel Committee said the Chinese government bore a "heavy responsibility for his premature death".
The campaigner was repeatedly jailed throughout his life. When not in prison, he was subject to severe restrictions while his wife, Liu Xia, was placed under house arrest.
Mr Liu died "peacefully", surrounded by his wife and other relatives, a doctor who treated him said. His final words to Liu Xia were: "Live on well," the South China Morning Post reported.
Liu Xiaobo played a significant role in the Tiananmen Square student protests of June 1989, which ended in bloodshed when they were quashed by government troops.
He and other activists negotiated the safe exit of several hundred demonstrators, and have been credited with saving their lives.
He was subsequently placed in a detention centre and released in 1991.
Mr Liu's campaign to free those detained during the Tiananmen Square protests landed him in a labour camp in north-eastern China for three years, but he was permitted to marry poet Liu Xia there in 1996.
He was later freed, and continued to campaign for democracy.
The 11-year jail term was handed down in 2009 after he compiled, with other intellectuals, the Charter 08 manifesto. It called for an end to one-party rule and the introduction of multi-party democracy.
Mr Liu was found guilty of trying to overthrow the state.
He was a pro-democracy figurehead for activists outside mainland China, although many of his compatriots were unaware of his struggles because the authorities rigorously censored news about him.
Who was Liu Xiaobo?
The activist in his own words
The dissident won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010 for his "long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China", but he was not permitted to travel to Norway to accept it.
He was the second person to receive the award while in prison - the other was the German pacifist Carl von Ossietzky, who won in 1935 while incarcerated in a Nazi concentration camp.
China media silent on Liu Xiaobo death
Love that survived a labour camp
By Carrie Gracie, China editor
Chinese authorities refused Liu Xiaobo's dying request to be allowed to travel abroad for treatment. Instead he died as he had lived, under the close watch of the one-party state.
The life and death of this Nobel laureate underline the cost of political defiance in China. Liu Xiaobo had enjoyed a comfortable early career as a university professor, but the massacre which followed the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests was the fork in his path.
Where many gave up demanding democracy, he stood firm and was jailed repeatedly. When he won the Nobel, he was serving a prison sentence for subversion. A furious Beijing subsequently placed his wife under house arrest.
Only in a hospital ward in the last days of his life have this suffering couple been reunited, to be parted again by his death.
More from Carrie Gracie
In the weeks leading up to his death, Mr Liu's case became mired in international controversy. Several Western countries urged China to allow Mr Liu to leave the country to seek palliative care elsewhere.
A German and an American doctor who recently visited and examined him in a hospital in the north-eastern city of Shenyang said he would be able to travel abroad. But Chinese medical experts insisted that he was too ill to travel.
Mr Liu's condition deteriorated shortly after he was admitted to hospital, according to Shenyang's First Hospital of China Medical University.
In a brief statement, Shenyang local officials said that Mr Liu had suffered multiple organ failure, and that efforts to save the activist had failed.
At a press conference, Teng Yue'e, the doctor who led the team treating Mr Liu, said: "He was not in any pain at that moment, he was very much at peace, because all of his relatives said their goodbyes beforehand."
Liu Xiaobo memorialised in social art
Coverage on mainland China has been muted - with only a few short reports in English.
Xinhua and CCTV news have issued short statements on their English sites stating that Liu Xiaobo, "convicted of subversion of state power", has died.
Communist Party mouthpiece Global Times said Mr Liu was "a victim led astray" by the West.
"The Chinese side has been focusing on Liu's treatment, but some Western forces are always attempting to steer the issue in a political direction, hyping the treatment as a 'human rights' issue," the Global Times added.
Official Chinese-language news sites on the mainland appear to have steered clear of reporting the story altogether.
Social media users have also noticed attempts from government censors to mute reaction online.
Many comments appear to have been deleted, including messages with "RIP" or candle emojis, popular when commemorating someone who has died.


Crewe Alexandra midfielder David Fox says the players were hurt by criticism from manager Steve Davis following Saturday's defeat at Peterborough.

Davis said some players had "thrown in the towel" following the League One strugglers' 3-0 loss at London Road.
"When the manager starts questioning your effort, that's what hurts the most," Fox, 32, told BBC Radio Stoke.
"But he's bang on - the performance left a lot of questions open and we have to try and put it right."
Crewe's fifth defeat in a row leaves the Alex now 15 points adrift of safety at the bottom of the table with just six games left and facing a near-impossible task of avoiding relegation.
Fox knows the situation is extremely difficult and says he is desperate for the team to at least show more character until the end of the season. "We're going down with a whimper at the moment and that hurts the most," he added.
"If results mean we go down at some point, at least go out fighting. It hurts your pride, it hurts your credibility. Every minute of every day it gets to you and that's how it should be."
Crewe face the short trip to local rivals Port Vale on Saturday knowing that defeat would almost certainly send them down. And Fox, who admits that "home truths" had been said in meetings with the manager this week, would not blame Davis if he decided to make radical changes.
"If the manager makes 11 changes on Saturday, I don't think anyone could argue with that," he said. "There's 20-odd players that realistically could all play.
"The manager's within his rights to play anyone now. You've got to put in a performance to prove you can play. I've got a lot of mates who are Port Vale fans, so I'd love to put one over them. But it's a real test for us."
The Alex go to Vale without a victory in 11 matches, having won just once in four months. But Steve Davis's side are unbeaten in three visits to Vale Park - and even won the last two.


England's Steve Webster and Matt Wallace hold a share of the lead after the first round of the Made in Denmark European Tour event in Farso.

Webster, 42, is aiming for his first Tour win in 10 years, while 27-year-old Wallace won the Portugal Open in May.
Both men recorded rounds of seven-under 64, as did New Zealand's Wade Ormsby.
Webster did not drop a shot in his round while Wallace would have had the overnight lead had he not bogeyed the 18th hole.
France's Benjamin Hebert and the Swedish pair of Oscar Lengden and Robert Karlsson are a shot further back, while English trio Paul Waring, John Parry and James Morrison are among 10 men on five under.


The advantage of canvassing close to Stormont is that you can call on your party colleagues to help you out.

When I caught up with Gavin Robinson in the leafy streets just outside the Stormont estate he had his DUP colleagues Arlene Foster, Lord Morrow and Ian McCrea for company.
But there's no protection from a barking dog - or its owner. At one doorstep the householder told the DUP candidate not to worry,  his animal didn't bite, before adding rather worryingly "unless I tell him to".
The pet owner then tackled Gavin Robinson about the pact agreed between the DUP and the Ulster Unionists in East Belfast, telling him "I didn't like you joining up with two parties together against Naomi".
The candidate responded that the deal had been decided "over my head".
On another doorstep not far away another candidate, Alliance's Naomi Long came across another over excited dog, named Chuckie. "Don't worry" the lady who answered the door assured her, "Chuckie's an Alliance supporter".
Naomi Long's victory over the DUP leader Peter Robinson, who held East Belfast for 30 years, was the big surprise of the 2010 election.
Alliance benefited from an anti-Robinson mood after TV investigations into his family's business dealings and a decision by some loyalists to lend their votes to Ms Long.
But since then the Alliance MP has found herself on the receiving end of death threats as a result of the Belfast council Union Flag dispute.
She told me the intimidation remains a regular occurrence - indeed she was hit by a projectile just this week after visiting a nail salon which had been targeted by racist arsonists.
Whilst condemning that kind of behaviour, unionists argue that Alliance bears responsibility for its own decisions in limiting the flying of the Union flag over Belfast City Hall.
Now Gavin Robinson, a namesake but not a relation of the DUP leader, has high hopes of winning East Belfast back for unionism.
The man with the barking dog might not like the pact, but others I talked to on the streets of East Belfast think unionists should have been co-operating long ago.
Gavin Robinson insists the pact has been broadly welcomed. But Naomi Long claims it has galvanised some Ulster Unionists to back her rather than let their choices be dictated by the unionist leaders.
Four others are competing for votes in East Belfast. They are Sinn Fein's Niall Ã“ Donnghaile, the SDLP's Mary Muldoon, the Greens' Ross Brown and the Conservative Neil Wilson.
But it's the DUP Alliance battle which is box office - something underlined by the large audience which packed out the Strand Cinema in East Belfast to watch the two frontrunners go head to head.
The Slugger O'Toole election debate wasn't quite the thriller some might have hoped for.
Both Naomi Long and Gavin Robinson were at pains to reject suggestions they can't stand each other. Gavin Robinson also distanced himself from remarks by his party leader that Ms Long she should "dry her eyes" rather than complaining about the unionist pact.
The candidates differed about issues like the extent of paramilitary racketeering or the impact a future withdrawal from the European Union might have on the local aircraft industry. Afterwards both sides claimed victory.
The audience were then ushered out to make way for the cinema's late showing "Fast and Furious 7", a title which could be adopted for the closely fought and sometimes heated contest in East Belfast.


Steelworkers from across the UK have taken part in a minute's silence to remember the two Celsa workers who died in an explosion at a Cardiff plant.

Hundreds of steelworkers from Wales travelled to Sheffield for a rally for the Save our Steel campaign event organised by steel trade unions.
A number of Celsa workers had been due to take part but they pulled out after Wednesday's blast.
Peter O'Brien, 51, of Cardiff, and Mark Sim, 41, of Caldicot, died.
A search for their bodies is continuing at the steelworks in Splott.
The company is working with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and police to determine the cause of the blast in the basement of the rod and bar mill at the site.
Five men were also injured in the explosion, one of whom remains in the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff.
A spokesman for the steelworkers' union, Community, said the minute's silence was held during the rally in Sheffield.
"Every steelworker in the UK will have been moved and affected by the shocking tragedy at Celsa this week," he said.
"It's a reminder of the risks that they can face on a daily basis and the need for everybody in the industry, particularly employers, to prioritise safety.
"It will be an extremely poignant moment as everyone stands in silence to remember their fellow steelworkers."
The rally is being held over fears of a crisis in the UK's steel industry after the collapse in steel prices led to plant closures and thousands of job losses.


An off-duty police officer has died after being assaulted in Greater Manchester.

PC Gareth Francis, 28, was walking home from a night out with friends on Castle Street, Edgeley, Stockport, at 01:20 GMT, when he was attacked, police said.
He was taken to Stepping Hill Hospital with a head injury and died later.
Two men, aged 20 and 21, from Stockport, have been been arrested on suspicion of his murder and remain in custody for questioning.
Detectives said he was dropped off by a taxi in Edgeley after a night out with friends in Manchester city centre and assaulted minutes later.
Ch Supt Chris Sykes said PC Francis joined Greater Manchester Police force in 2007 and was serving at West Didsbury Police Station.
He added: "Gareth was a dedicated police officer with six years' experience and he will be greatly missed by his colleagues.
"However, the loss will be even greater for Gareth's family and I would like to reassure them that we have a team of detectives working round-the-clock now to establish exactly what happened this morning.
"Gareth's colleagues on the South Manchester Division have been dealt a terrible blow by today's news and and welfare is being provided to any members of staff affected by this tragedy."
His family paid tribute to "a gorgeous son" who brought "love and laughter" to their lives, the force added.
A post-mortem examination will take place later to establish the cause of death.


Crusaders extended their Premiership lead to 10 points thanks to a facile 3-0 win over struggling Carrick Rangers.

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With Linfield not in action until Monday against Cliftonville, goals from Philip Lowry, Jordan Owens and Billy Joe Burns secured Crusaders' home win.
Coleraine are now only a point behind third-placed Cliftonville after beating Glentoran 2-0.
Glenavon secured a top-six finish by beating Dungannon 2-0 while Ballymena United beat 10-man Portadown 3-0.
Only an heroic display by Carrick keeper Brian Neeson prevented the champions from hitting a cricket score at Seaview.
The Antrim GAA player made five superb early stops before Lowry struck the Crues ahead on 19 minutes with a close-range shot that Neeson will probably feel he should have stopped.
Tzee Mustapha's introduction did spur Carrick to improve but the Rangers substitute missed a chance to level after a poor Sean O'Neill clearance before Owens doubled Crusaders' advantage with a header.
Neeson, who had made further great saves early in the second half, protested that Owens' header hadn't crossed the line but referee Lee Tavinder awarded the goal.
With recalled Richard Clarke impressing in the Crues midfield, Burns sealed the champions' victory as he produced an accomplished finish from a tight angle.
Clarke's late missed penalty, as Neeson saved the weak effort, mattered little as far as the champions were concerned.
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Coleraine didn't have to get out of third gear to see off a disappointing Glentoran at the Showgrounds.
Eoin Bradley put the Bannsiders ahead from a 17th-minute penalty after he had been brought down in the area by Marcus Kane.
Steven Gordon clipped the Coleraine woodwork in the first half with Kane also having a header cleared off the line by his namesake Lyndon Kane, but the home side looked the more threatening for the most part.
Jamie McGonigle's seventh goal in as many games doubled Coleraine's advantage midway through the second half after a fine cross by Ciaron Harkin while Glentoran's misery was completed by Eric Foley's late dismissal for dissent.
Glenavon guaranteed their top-six spot as first-half goals from David Elebert and James Gray secured a comfortable win over a labouring Dungannon Swifts outfit.
Elebert nodded in Glenavon's opener on 12 minutes after a James Singleton header had come back off the Dungannon crossbar.
The second goal came some 15 minutes later as Gray netted from close range after a Joel Cooper volley had been blocked following good work by Guy Bates.
Glenavon-bound striker Andrew Mitchell headed a great Dungannon chance over the crossbar when the scoreline was 1-0 and also had an effort saved by Jonny Tuffey in the second half.
After having the bulk of the chances in the first half, Ballymena took the lead on 50 minutes against Portadown as Michael Kerr tapped into the net after a Johnny McMurray cross.
Recalled centre-half Johnny Flynn doubled Ballymena's lead just before the hour mark as he nodded home a Tony Kane corner.
Portadown's afternoon went from bad to worse as defender Ken Oman was sent off for an off-the-ball kick on Ballymena's Flynn and Kane rounded off the home win with a 77th-minute penalty.
Ballymena remain fifth in the table, two points behind fourth-placed neighbours Coleraine and a further point back from Cliftonville.