Chris Gallagher: Winning Premiership title with Larne makes January move from Cliftonville worthwhile

The ex-Shrewsbury Town ace had been linked with a move to Inver Park for weeks prior to the deal being finalised in early-January and Gallagher slid seamlessly into Larne’s midfield, making 13 league appearances and scoring twice.

He’s now celebrating a first Premiership triumph and is determined to keep adding to his medal haul over the coming years.

“At the time it was a hard decision but having a day like this makes me not regret the decision - I'm over the moon,” he said. “It was a hard decision and one I had to think long and hard about.

"I always wanted to go back into that full-time environment and luckily enough for me it was the champions that came calling. In the end it was a no-brainer and days like these make it worthwhile.

"I think it has been evident over the past four or five years the success the club has had. Hopefully we can build on that."

Gallagher will now also get a first taste of Champions League football with Larne progressing into the first round qualifiers – they’re guaranteed at least €350,000 in prize money this summer – with an Irish League outfit still waiting to take the unprecedented step into a major European competition.

Linfield came within seconds of achieving it, losing out on penalties in the final round of Europa Conference League qualifying to RFS in 2022, and whoever does achieve it will receive a significant financial windfall with a group stage spot worth €2,940,000 while each victory another €500,000 and draw €166,000.

"We'll get a few weeks off here then it's back to business and we'll be looking to do well in that,” added Gallagher. "We want to be the first team to get into the group stage of European competition, so we'll have a few weeks off and then the hard work will start.

"As a player you want to play at the highest level, whether it's here, abroad or in Europe. We're very lucky to be in the position we are in winning the league and getting the chance to play in the Champions League."