What next for Larne after tumultuous 12 months?

Gary Haveron takes charge of Larne again on an interim basis following the departure of Nathan Rooney

By any standards, it has been an eventful 12 months at Irish Premiership club Larne.

The revolution which transformed the east Antrim outfit from second-tier Championship strugglers to back-to-back Irish League champions and European trailblazers is one of the more remarkable stories of recent times in Northern Ireland sport.

Those successes were built on the stability of having businessman Kenny Bruce as owner and Tiernan Lynch as long-serving manager, but much has changed at Inver Park over the last year.

With Monday's shock announcement that Nathan Rooney was leaving his position as first-team boss after just one game of the new league season providing the latest instalment in the saga, BBC Sport NI reflects on the upheavals at Larne and asks what, and who, may come next.

Boardroom changes

The arrival of Kenny Bruce, co-founder of an online estate agency, as owner of his hometown club in September 2017, ushered in an exciting new era at Larne.

Bruce's financial clout and business expertise helped provide the necessary funding and infrastructure to build a team capable of securing promotion to the top flight and subsequently their first-ever league title in 2023, and the defence of their crown in 2024.

Champions League football and history in the form of becoming the first ever Irish League club to participate in the lucrative league or group stages of a major European competitions followed, but in July it was confirmed that Bruce had sold his 50% stake in the club.

The lifelong fan handed over the reins to Redball Global FC's Nick Giannotti and Eric Perez, who were described as "two seasoned executives with deep experience in international football and sports business".

American firm Redball are also involved with English Football League club Plymouth Argyle and League of Ireland side Athlone Town.

Previously, in September 2023, an American business consortium bought a minority share in Larne, before the Veeck family - who previously owned Major League Baseball sides St. Louis Browns and Chicago White Sox - made a minority investment three months later.

In March 2025, chief executive Niall Curneen left his role to take up a new role outside of the club, while in June general manager Shay Kennedy departed to become head of business operations at the Northern Ireland Football League.

Kenny Bruce sold his 50% stake in Larne to Redball Global FC's Nick Giannotti and Eric Perez

Managerial merry-go-round

After guiding Larne to consecutive Premiership crowns and qualification for the Conference League league stage, Tiernan Lynch turned down the chance to become manager of Scottish Premiership club St Johnstone in September 2024.

His departure from Inver Park was only delayed by two months however as he was lured to the Brandywell to become manager of Derry City in the League of Ireland.

Lynch's vision of introducing a full-time professional set-up at Larne, complete with high-level training facilities, had matched the ambition of owner Bruce and the pair worked in tandem during the seven years of the former Glentoran assistant's time in charge.

Following his exit, Nathan Rooney, ex-manager of Gibraltarian team Bruno's Magpies, was appointed as his successor.

It emerged that Rooney did not possess the necessary coaching badge to lead the side in European competition, leading to first team coach Gary Haveron first assuming control for Conference League games and then in December being appointed head coach for the remainder of the season, with Rooney becoming head of football.

Despite significant fixture congestion caused by their continental odyssey, Haveron guided the team to a second-place league league finish and European qualification.

In May, it was confirmed that Rooney would be reinstalled as manager following his enrolment on a Uefa Pro Licence course but after winning through two Conference League qualifying rounds via penalty shootouts, before exiting the competition to Santa Clara, and having been in charge of a solitary domestic top flight game this term against Coleraine, his departure was confirmed on Monday.

The backroom team at the club has also undergone significant change.

Squad transition

Having been able to attract quality players from other Premiership clubs and beyond since going full-time, Larne's squad has been thrown more into a state of flux with a higher turnover of players since achieving their successive league championship triumphs.

Defenders Kofi Balmer and Craig Farquhar moved onto bigger and better things with moves to Crystal Palace in the summer of 2022 and January 2024 respectively, while prolific striker Lee Bonis secured a transfer to Dutch side Den Haag before the start of the 2024-25 campaign and has gone on to win four Northern Ireland caps.

Midfield powerhouse Leroy Millar, named Footballer of the Year at the Northern Ireland Football Awards in April 2023, was a pivotal figure in Larne's two Premiership triumphs, but suffered a groin injury in April 2024 which has sidelined him for the large majority of the period since.

Forward Andy Ryan has also been hampered by injury setbacks, the latest a serious knee injury sustained in a behind-closed-doors friendly against Dungannon Swifts in July, which may keep him out of action for up to six months.

Fellow frontmen Paul O'Neill and Matty Lusty suffered their own injury woes last term while a club which was used to bringing in some of the cream of domestic talent lost defender Levi Ives to big-spending Coleraine and Joe Thomson to Glentoran during the most recent January transfer window.

Accomplished defender Shaun Want followed them out the door for family reasons in June when he returned to his native Scotland to sign for Ayr United.

Shaun Want was a mainstay of the Larne defence last season but has now moved to Ayr United

Where to next?

In their statement confirming Rooney's exit on Monday, Larne explained that their decision to part company with the Englishman was taken "in line with implementing our long-term football strategy and what we believe will give us the best possible opportunity to succeed in the years to come, both on and off the pitch".

They say they will undertake "an extensive process to appoint a successor".

How this strategy develops in practice remains to be seen but a trawl to cast the net wide appears likely.

Will the club opt for a head of football, working in conjunction with a head coach, or appoint a more traditional manager with sole charge of first-team affairs?

In the interim, assistant manager Haveron returns to the hotseat, but whether he would like to take charge of his hometown club on a permanent basis is unknown.

Might the Invermen decide on another manager from outside Northern Ireland or will they look to choose someone with significant Irish League experience?

Rodney McAree will have his admirers among Larne fans given the remarkable progress he made with Dungannon last term but the Swifts boss signed a three-year extension to his contract with the Stangmore Park club in October last year.

Ex-Coleraine boss Oran Kearney is another who may come into the conversation, although his understood preference for a part-time role would likely prove a stumbling block.