County Antrim Shield success can really signify new era at Larne, says Gary Haveron who looks to take wisdom from old managers
Gary Haveron says winning his first trophy with Larne will help ease the transition of a new era at the club.
The Inver Reds - who have won two league titles on the spin - were rocked back in November when Tiernan Lynch, who was a key figurehead in the club's transformation from Championship battlers to Premiership winners, departed to take the reins at Derry City.
Larne opted to appoint FCB Magpies manager Nathan Rooney to lead the helm but his lack of a Pro Licence meant a restructuring had to take place, with Haveron then promoted as first-team boss.
Haveron has guided Larne up the table after playing catch-up due to European commitments, but suffered loses to Limavady United and Cliftonville in the Irish Cup and BetMcLean Cup respectively.
However, Larne have a chance to win the first piece of silverware by lifting a record fifth County Antrim Shield in succession as they meet Glentoran at Seaview on Tuesday night.
"I think it has to be a new chapter for the club,” he said. “Tiernan and Seamus obviously had a really successful spell at the club. We've won back-to-back titles but the boys had laid seven or eight years of foundations to win those two titles.
"They were given that time to implement what they needed to get that success. There's been a change in personnel too as Lee Bonis has moved on and Leroy Millar hasn't really been available to us all season, so you have to adapt how you play because you can't play the same way as those two are irreplaceable.
"Leroy will hopefully be available sooner rather than later but when you lose someone like Lee you have to change as you no longer have the players to do the things they did.
"You have to find a new way of doing things and that's the challenge for us to find a new way of doing things, a new way of playing, keeping it fresh and keeping it interesting."
Haveron, who had spells in charge at Glentoran and Carrick Rangers, says he has taken plenty of words of wisdom under his former managers during his playing career.
He stated: "There are some things in football that never change and for me it's about having that desire to want to play and give your best every day.
"I was lucky to work with Irish League royalty when I got to work with Marty Quinn, Roy Walker, Paul Kirk and Tommy Wright. They really had a big impact on me as a person.
"Marty had the best mentality out of anybody, he was a brilliant motivator, his team talks were something else. You wanted to rip the door off the hinges.
"He was the one person who could shout at you and tear strips off you and then buy you a beer straight afterwards and you still wanted to please him.
"Paul Kirk was an unbelievable motivator too, it was all about self-confidence and belief. He had belief in himself and he carried that into his players.
"Tommy Wright was so professional and organised and Roy Walker was so philosophical, he was such a clever man who would have an analogy for anything.
"If you can't take parts of them into who you are and who you want to be then you'd be foolish."