Larne fans gutted after freezing fog cancels flights to Champions League match in Slovenia: "This could have been our last chance - we'll be sitting in the social club staring at our Euros"
Larne fans have been left gutted after bad weather cancelled flights to one of the biggest matches in the club’s 130-year history.
Eager supporters turned up at George Best City Airport yesterday lunchtime, overjoyed to jet off to Slovenia to back their team after they became the first Irish Premiership side to reach the main draw of a European competition.
But instead of cheering in Stožice Stadium tonight, they’ll be watching Larne battle Olimpija Ljubljana on TV from their usual social club –drowning their sorrows while staring at Euros in their pockets that they’ll never spend.
Says superfan Lyn Kernohan: “There were about 22 of us stuck in the airport for six hours until we got the announcement the flights were cancelled.
"There were two wee children along – they were the worst of it, they were so excited when they walked into the airport. It was absolutely heart-breaking.”
Most of yesterday’s flights into and out of City Airport were cancelled due to freezing fog around Belfast.
And while the gathered Larne fans tried to hurriedly arrange substitute journeys, they didn’t have any luck.
"The problem was, we had to go from Belfast to London and then a connecting flight to Slovenia,” says Lyn.
"While we could have got a London flight the following morning, there weren’t any connections that would have got us to the match on time.
“We were looking at everything – possibly switching to International Airport or Dublin, looking at getting flights to France or to Venice and then travelling on, but either nothing would have worked or they didn’t have enough space.”
Lyn says each one of the supporters is out about £600 as a result of the cancellations, and so far don’t know whether their holiday insurance will cover the problem or if the bad weather would be regarded as an act of God.
But the worst is that they’re missing out on what could be the culmination of Larne FC’s incredible, even unlikely rise over the last few years.
"There’s only one match left after Slovenia, but it’s in Azerbaijan so it’s not really reachable,” says Lyn.
"It’s been incredible to see Larne reach the UEFA Conference League, but the odds aren’t in our favour – literally, the bookies have us at 16:1.
"At least we’ll be surrounded by other fans in the social club. We’ll be drinking copious of amounts of alcohol because of this, I’m sure.”
Qualifying for Europe has been seen as the topper to one of the most astonishing turnarounds in Northern Ireland’s footballing history.
Larne spent years as a middling side, struggling with relegation and financial woes during the 1990s and failing to earn a place in the IFA Premiership when it was created in 2008.
Seven years ago, local businessman Kenny Bruce took over the club and flipped its fortunes, heavily investing in players, staff and facilities while explicitly stating that his ambition was to get them into Europe.
Many ridiculed the idea, but by 2019 Larne were in the Premiership and haven’t looked back since, scooping several trophies and repeatedly topping the division.
This is the first time they’ve made it to actually compete in Europe, as previous runs at the Champions League have seen them knocked out during qualifiers.