Larne overcome spot of bother to give themselves fighting chance
HJK Helsinki 1
Larne 0
Larne’s Andy Ryan gets into his stride against HJK Helsinki
Tomas Cosgrove
It took only 60 seconds for Larne’s Champions League debut to take a nightmare twist but the Invermen raised themselves from the canvas and HJK Helsinki know they are still in a fight.
The tie is finely poised with the Finnish giants bringing a slender 1-0 lead with them to Solitude next Wednesday but this first-round qualifier was in danger of slipping away from the visitors after some early drama.
Having won the first top-flight title in their 134-year existence in April, this was a proud moment in Larne’s history but just one minute after Georgian referee Goga Kikacheishvili signalled the start of the contest, the hosts were given a penalty.
The spot-kick was awarded after a clumsy challenge by Cian Bolger on Topi Keskinen.
Tomas Cosgrove
Spanish-born striker Bojan Radulovic sent Rohan Ferguson the wrong way from the penalty spot twice — a retake was ordered after his stuttered run-up — and Tiernan Lynch’s side were immediately on the ropes.
At a sunny Bolt Arena, Larne’s Champions League dream looked to be melting away.
As proud as they will feel, the Premiership champions will be kicking themselves.
The early penalty that produced the only goal of the first leg was a costly error.
Larne recovered to prevent further damage and created a few opportunities of their own but the scoreline would have been much healthier without that early setback.
It was a harsh introduction to life at this elite level.
But this team that were languishing at the bottom of the Championship just six years ago showed steel and resilience to get up off the floor and fight back.
With a little luck they could have snatched an equaliser but they
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