Lusty Double Seals Larne's Third Straight Win
Larne took all three points against Cliftonville with a 2-0 victory in the Premiership regular season on Tuesday evening. M. Lusty was the sole scorer, netting twice in the first half to give the hosts a comfortable lead they never surrendered. The result keeps Larne third in the table with 13 points from five matches, while Cliftonville drops to fourth with 12 points after seven games.
The opening goal came at the thirteen-minute mark when Lusty found the back of the net. To be fair, he didn't have to wait long for his second, adding another at thirty-eight minutes before Cliftonville could respond. The visitors had more possession at 54 per cent but couldn't get a shot on target all evening. By then the match was effectively over, though Larne saw a yellow card to L. McStravick at fifty minutes.
Cliftonville's attacking numbers tell a different story. They managed four shots off target but zero on target, while Larne produced ten on target and eight wide. The statistics don't lie — when you have 54 per cent possession and no shots on target, you're not threatening. The home side made their chances count, and that's what separates these two sides on the table.
Both managers made changes in the second half. P. O'Neill and D. Sloan came off together at seventy-three minutes, while M. Lusty was replaced by R. Doherty at eighty-two. The hosts picked up one yellow card between them, the visitors one as well, with an unnamed booking at eighty-eight minutes closing out an eventful evening.
Larne are unbeaten in five now, having won their last three league games. They beat Portadoun 2-0 and Bangor 1-0 before that, with only a 3-0 defeat to Lincoln Red Imps breaking the run. Cliftonville's form is more mixed — they've won four of seven but lost three, including recent defeats to Dunagannon Swifts and Linfield.
The goal difference matters less in these games. What matters is the three points, the momentum, and the fact that Larne have now won four out of five matches. Cliftonville will look at the six shots they couldn't convert and wonder what happened.
