Gary Haveron praise for Larne youngster as Inver Reds extend unbeaten Premiership run
Larne manager Gary Haveron has praised young defender Logan Wallace for stepping up in recent matches to help the Premiership leaders maintain their unbeaten run, which extended to 12 following Tuesday’s stalemate with Cliftonville.
The Inver Reds sit four points clear of Coleraine, who visit Inver Park on Friday, and are nine better off than third-placed Glentoran as they look to lift a third Gibson Cup crown.
Haveron is currently without the likes of Mark Randall and Tiarnan O’Connor, while Tomas Cosgrove and Matty Lusty made their return from illness in Larne’s midweek draw.
Perhaps the biggest moment of Tuesday evening was star striker Andy Ryan coming off the bench to register his first appearance of the season.
With the absence of key players, Larne’s depth has been tested with 20-year-old Wallace starting in their last two matches during a crucial part of the season where fixtures come thick and fast.
Wallace helped maintain the Co Antrim club’s superb home record – Haveron’s men have conceded just twice in 11 matches at Inver Park – and the Larne chief is delighted with how players are stepping up to the mark.
"It has been frustrating because you want to have everybody available so you can pick your strongest team for that given game,” he told the club’s media channel. “It has been frustrating to miss so many players over this crucial period, but you have to hope that other teams will be affected the same way and they'll miss key players over the course of the season.
"When somebody is asked to step in and do a job, I think they've done so well. Ryan Nolan was struggling with illness so Logan Wallace went in there and done super, I thought he was very dominant and looked very comfortable in possession.
"When people get the opportunity it's up to them to grab it with both hands."
Haveron was also left disappointed that his side were denied two penalty decisions which he felt were “clear as day”.
"We dominated the ball a lot in the game,” he added. “They came with a game plan to sit in, especially in the first half where they tried to frustrate us.
"They never really came and pressed us, they sat off us a little bit and kept their shape really well which made it difficult for us to break down.
"We worked a few shooting chances, we got in behind them a little bit at times down the left, especially in the first half, but we weren’t clinical with our final ball or find that bit of quality.
"When we did get down the side of them the keeper made a great save from Matty Lusty when he went back across the goalkeeper.
"The bigger thing for me are the two nailed-on penalties...Casey’s all over the back of Matt Ridley, makes no contact with the ball, just jumps right over the back of our player. If he doesn’t win the ball then it’s a stonewall penalty.
"Tomas Cosgrove’s one, Evan Boyce (referee) has just spoken to the two players beforehand and the exact same thing happens where Tomas makes a run and the boy just pulls him to the ground.
"If they aren’t penalties then I don’t know what is...they are as clear as day when you see them back and it’s disappointing we haven’t got those big decisions.”