Away day at Carrick Rangers is ‘a mentality test’, says Larne chief Gary Haveron ahead of derby battle
Larne boss Gary Haveron has labelled today’s derby contest at Carrick Rangers as “a mentality test” for his players.
The two clubs meet at Taylors Avenue in the first derby contest between the two clubs this season.
Larne travel to the home of their rivals in great form as they remain unbeaten with four wins and a draw from their opening five Premiership contests.
As for Carrick, they ended a run of two consecutive defeats by a battling to a 1-1 draw against Ballymena United on Tuesday night.
“We know it’s going to be a difficult challenge going to Taylors Avenue,” Haveron said. "I know Lee Feeney (Bangor manager) made a comment how Carrick are the best in the league at what they do and he’s right.
"They might be seen by some as simply being a direct team but they have so much quality and they are so competitive.
"The playing surface at Taylors Avenue can be difficult and they play to it well, so it’s a mentality test for our boys. We know we have to be on it and compete for every ball if we are to leave with a positive result.”
It certainly won’t be the first time that Haveron has shared the touchline with his counterpart Stephen Baxter and he spoke of his admiration for the ‘Gers boss and how the club has progressed since availing of outside investment.
He added: “Stephen has been there and done it...he deserves all the credit for his longevity as a season can sometimes feel very long. He was there in the good times and the bad times for Crusaders and he now has a very good team at Carrick.
"The Carrick of now is not the club I was once at in terms of the investment there but it’s great to see. They have an ultra-competitive squad and I know Stephen heavily relies on experienced players who have won it all.”
Larne have used the fuel from their Conference League play-off defeat to Lincoln Red Imps by winning four successive Premiership games. They are continuing to play catch-up after some of their Premiership games had to be postponed due to their European exploits but Haveron had no doubts they would have no hangover from their heartbreaking exit.
"We knew no matter what happened in Europe that we would have to go back to the Irish League,” he explained. "We have a vastly experience squad who have won three out of the last four league titles, so I had no doubts we would be fine.
"We are still a relatively young team...it’s probably only Mark Randall, Tomas Cosgrove and Leroy Millar who are over 30, the rest are in their mid to late 20s, but they’ve gained so much experience already.
"The young lads like Dylan Sloan, James Simpson and Matty Lusty bring an energy and a real vibrance to the group. I was actually speaking to Dylan the other day and he has around 30 European games behind him and he’s still eligible for the U21s, so his development is always continuing.”