Flipping competitions will become natural over time for Larne, says Nathan Rooney ahead of BetMcLean Cup encounter at Annagh United
Larne boss Nathan Rooney says the Inver Reds will naturally get to grips with competing on all fronts as they visit Annagh United in the quarter-final of the BetMcLean Cup this evening.
After playing Slovenian outfit Olimpija Ljubljana in the Conference League last Thursday and then Cliftonville in the Sports Direct Premiership on Sunday, the men from east Antrim continue their busy week by aiming to reach the last four of the BetMcLean Cup.
The winners of tonight’s tie know they will face either Armagh City or Cliftonville at home in the semi-final.
Rooney - who has replaced Tiernan Lynch in the Larne hot seat - took charge of his new employers for the first time on Sunday as they played out a 1-1 draw at home to Cliftonville.
The Inver Reds are currently playing catch-up in the Premiership after having games postponed, reached the final of the County Antrim Shield and have two matches remaining in the group stages of the Conference League.
With the busy run of fixtures ahead - which includes the Irish Cup starting early in the New Year - Rooney says he will have plenty of opportunities to look at his squad depth.
When asked on Larne's social media channels if he is embracing the run of games, which continues tonight against Championship Annagh, Rooney replied: "I think you can learn about each other but over a period of time that should become natural in terms of flipping between the competitions.
"Obviously the way we set the team up will mirror that.
"When you're coming off the back foot, a little bit of a negative set-up in terms of playing against better teams in Europe, it kind of has that little bit of a hangover period.
"We have to shift that mindset, we've got to park it, we've now got to get more confidence and make sure we get a run of games in the league and I think that'll put us where we need to be.
"We've got a bit of variation and we've got to use the squad over the coming weeks.”
The Inver Reds ensured Rooney’s start as Larne manager ended without a loss at home to Cliftonville as defender Ryan Nolan popped up with a header with one minute of regulation time to go.
It marked a fine way for Nolan to return as the former Inter Milan trainee had been absent in recent weeks due to injury.
"As a player you want to play more games than train,” Nolan said of the gruelling schedule and his return to full fitness.
"The gaffer would probably prefer more days on the training pitch to get his ideas across.
"But I think games could be a good thing as well to implement his ideas straight away.
"We're just looking forward to Wednesday and then another game next weekend.
"I just want to keep playing games, the team wants to keep playing games and the more games that come, the faster we can get wins on the board and start climbing the table.”