'It looks like it's a bad one' - Tiernan Lynch provides injury update and maintains confidence Larne will 'bounce back' from Linfield defeat
Larne manager Tiernan Lynch has full belief that his side will “bounce back” from their Premiership defeat to Linfield – a result which helped the Blues open up an eight-point advantage at the summit and go 14 clear of the Inver Reds.
Joel Cooper’s first half strike was enough for David Healy’s men to clinch a 1-0 triumph at Inver Park – only a second in their 10 league visits to the County Antrim venue since 2019 – and puts the South Belfast outfit in a commanding early position as they look to reclaim the Gibson Cup.
It continues what has been a mixed start to the Premiership season for Lynch’s defending champions, who have now won just two of their last six league matches, but holding three games in hand due to involvement in the UEFA Conference League still provides an opportunity for them to make up ground.
"The second half was a much better performance and more Larne-like,” Lynch reflected on the club’s media channel. “We were braver, got on the ball and we moved it, but that final third hurt us.
"We need to get better in the final third, score more goals and create more chances. We will reflect on this - it's not the end of the world at this stage. It's disappointing but we have to bounce back.
"All we try and do is take it one game at a time. We just can't look too far ahead. There's lots of games, injuries, suspensions and all that goes with it so you literally have to take it one game at a time.
"Nights like tonight are disappointing and they probably knock you a bit, but that's a resilient group and they'll bounce back from this I've no doubt."
Qualifying for Europe has provided Larne with unique challenges of balancing their busy schedule and that continues with a BetMcLean Cup trip to Institute on Tuesday evening before travelling to Ballymena United next weekend and Slovenian outfit Olimpija Ljubljana on November 28.
Their Linfield loss was further compounded by injuries to star striker Andy Ryan, who was replaced after 25 minutes having missed their previous league win over Coleraine, and wing-back Josh Seary.
Seary has impressed after stepping in for Tomas Cosgrove after he picked up an issue during Larne’s Conference League defeat to Shamrock Rovers last month and Lynch admits it could be a “bad one” for the Preston North End loanee.
"I'm not sure where we are with Chucky (Ryan) just yet but Josh looks like it's a bad one,” he added. “There's a lot of swelling there at the moment and he'll need a scan so until we get to that stage we won't know.
"We're not going to make excuses and we're not going to lose a game and try to see if we can finger point or anything like that. It's one of those ones where yes, there's no getting away from there's a lot of games.
"As I've said a million times there's a game every 3.6 days or whatever it was that it was worked out at and there are challenges in there. It's relentless, but it's where we want to be and we just have to deal with it better.
"Right now with the injuries and suspensions, we're a bit up and down and lacking a bit of consistency. We need to find consistency and we'll be fine."