Five-star Larne earn first victory under new boss Nathan Rooney as they dispatch Annagh United in the quarter-final of the BetMcLean Cup

The Inver Reds – who have yet to lift the trophy in the club’s history – held the first-half advantage as a precise finish from Matthew Lusty gave the visitors the lead.

A quickfire start to the second-half eased Larne’s passage through as an own goal doubled their advantage, before Lusty grabbed another to make it a comfortable evening for the visitors.

There was even time to celebrate a return and goal for Leroy Millar who grabbed Larne’s fourth goal of the contest as he marked his comeback from injury in fine style.

The match ball was secured by Lusty as he completed his hat-trick at the death for a 5-0 success.

With Larne's busy schedule firmly on Nathan Rooney's mind, the new Inver Reds chief made six changes for the visit to the BMG Arena.

On a cold night in County Armagh, the hosts had the first chance of the game as Craig Taylor was sent through on goal but the winger was thwarted by a stop from Larne custodian Rohan Ferguson.

Despite that early scare, the league champions broke the deadlock on 22 minutes as the ball broke to Lusty at the edge of the area, with the striker making no mistake by finding the bottom corner.

Lusty tried to go from goalscorer to goal provider as the 21-year-old had the vision to pick out Benji Magee but the summer arrival from Loughgall was denied by a smart stop by Jason Craughwell.

Just before the interval, Annagh survived a major scare as Ryan Nolan - who scored in the recent 1-1 draw against Cliftonville - thought he was going to make it two goals in as many games but his header was cleared off the line.

Any thoughts of a home comeback were quickly distinguished at the start of the second-half as the visitors netted twice within as many minutes to seal their passage through to the next round.

On 47 minutes, a dangerous cross by Magee forced an Annagh player to score an own goal, before Lusty added his second of the evening three minutes later with a clinical finish after he was picked out by Mark Randall.

Larne were able to make substitutions after flexing their muscles when included a long-awaited return for Millar from injury. The midfielder has yet to be involved for the Inver Reds this season and his return is set to be an added boost as the east Antrim side continue their efforts on four fronts.

Millar, who was named as the Footballer of the Year at the Northern Ireland Football Awards in 2023, had a return to remember as he grabbed Larne’s fourth goal on 82 minutes.

A fine team move on the right-hand resulted in the ex-Ballymena United man being picked out inside the box by Tomas Cosgrove and he found the back of the net with a ruthless finish from 12 yards.

The final act was left for Lusty as he completed his hat-trick at the death with a great finish into the corner.