Irish Premiership: Larne put eight past Reds in Inver rout to go top

Andy Ryan bagged a hat-trick as Larne thumped Cliftonville 8-1 at Inver Park to reclaim top spot in the Premiership.

Reds striker Ronan Hale was sent-off at 2-0 as the champions move a point above Linfield.

Matthew Shevlin struck twice to help Coleraine to a 2-1 victory over Glentoran while Loughgall secured a 3-1 win over Glenavon.

Ballymena United went down to a 2-1 defeat at Carrick Rangers and Dungannon Swifts beat bottom side Newry City 2-0.

Larne took a big step in retaining the title as they moved back ahead of the Blues with three rounds of matches remaining.

The hosts went in front on 10 minutes when Lee Bonis dispossessed Odhran Casey in the left hand channel and he cut inside before rifling a low shot past David Odumosu.

The home side doubled their advantage on 19 minutes as Sean Graham's inswinging corner was missed by Odumosu and although the ball was headed out to the edge of the penalty area, it was met with aplomb by the in-rushing Aaron Donnelly, who drilled home a shot via a slight deflection off Casey.

Celebration time for Larne striker Andy Ryan after scoring against Cliftonville

Cliftonville suffered a further setback just short of the half-hour mark when striker Ronan Hale, already on an early caution, disputed a decision by referee Ian McNabb and was shown a second yellow card.

Larne took full advantage as they grabbed a third goal four minutes before the interval. Odhran Casey initially made a good challenge to win the ball in the penalty area but then dallied and lost possession to Mark Randall, who squared for Ryan to find the corner of the net with a shot.

Ryan claimed his second goal and Larne's fourth in first-half stoppage time with a glancing header from Randall's free kick.

The Scottish striker completed his treble nine minutes into the second half, playing a lovely one-two with strike partner Bonis, who back-heeled into Ryan's path to fire past Odumosu.

Cliftonville pulled a goal back on the hour mark when substitute Paul O'Neill was adjudged to have fouled Casey while defending a corner and Ben Wilson sent Rohan Ferguson the wrong way from the resultant spot kick.

But the five-goal margin was restored on 72 minutes when, following some head tennis between Paul O'Neill and Micheal Glynn, the ball dropped for Leroy Millar to poke past Odumosu.

Just over a minute later it was 7-1 as Ryan drilled a shot through a crowded goalmouth and Joe Thomson was ideally place to touch the ball home from just a few yards out.

Chris Gallagher put further gloss on the scoreline in stoppage time with the best goal of the afternoon - running onto a loose ball to fire an unstoppable shot past Odumosu from outside the penalty area.

Shevlin as the double as Bannsiders beat Glens

Shevlin was on hand to pounce on defensive slackness in the Glentoran defence as Oran Kearney's side made it seven games without defeat.

Patrick McClean responded for the visitors, but the Bannsiders did enough to claim all three-points.

Oran Kearney handed 16-year-old Aidan Tejada his first-team debut, but the teenager's first appearance ended prematurely when he was forced off with an ankle injury after just 26 minutes.

In a largely forgettable first-half with Glentoran enjoying the majority of possession. But for all their endeavour, the visitors were restricted to shots from distance with midfielder James Singleton's effort on the half-hour mark the best either side could offer in the opening exchanges.

The second-half was a much brighter affair. After seeing Jamie Glackin's free-kick whistle past McCarey's goal, Shevlin opened the scoring in the 55th minute after he nipped in front of Patrick McClean to intercept a Fuad Sule pass.

On 70 minutes Shevlin doubled his account when he pounced on Luke McCullough's backpass and slipped a shot under the advancing McCarey.

Glentoran threw caution to the wind and McClean gave the visitors hope in the 78th minute after Coleraine failed to properly clear a Glentoran corner.

The Glens dominated the closing exchanges but failed to find the target as Declan Devine tasted defeat in a league clash for the first time.

Loughgall & Carrick prevail

Loughgall have taken two wins from four against their Armagh rivals this season as two first-half goals from Ryan Waide and Andrew Hoey saw them ahead at the break.

Glenavon had one disallowed early in the second half when Gavin Hodgins was ruled offside. They were gifted a way back into the game when Caolan Loughran headed past his own keeper on 82 minutes before he was sent off for a head butt on Darren Clarke.

However, any nerves were settled in stoppage time when Benji Magee scored his first goal since mid-January to seal three points.

It was a first half of few chances at Carrick with Ballymena's best opportunity coming on the 25th minute when Jonathan McMurray's effort from range was narrowly wide of the upright.

Carrick's best opening came when Ben Tilney did well to cut inside with his right-footed strike from 25-yards making Sean O'Neill produce a diving save.

After the restart Alex Gawne's shot from outside the box was just wide of the right-hand post before Calvin McCurry's goal-bound header from a Sean Brown cross made Ross Glendinning produce a superb save.

The home side opened the scoring on the 61st minute when Tilney connected with Steven Gordon's pass from defence, weaved his way round multiple Ballymena players and fired a strong strike into the bottom corner past the outstretched O'Neill.

They doubled their advantage on the 77th minute after Danny Gibson controlled a looping cross and travelled down the right-hand side of the penalty before chipping into the top corner.

The away side got on the scoresheet in some style with the last kick of the game when Noah Stewart's strike from range found the back of the net, but it wasn't enough to stop Carrick from breaking their record amount of points in the Premiership.

Dungannon defeat basement boys

Dungannon's pursuit of a European play-off berth gained momentum with a vital 2-0 victory over struggling 10-man Newry City at the Showgrounds.

In the 21st minute Joe Moore broke the deadlock with a well-taken goal. Exploiting the space on the flank, Moore unleashed a shot that caught everyone off guard, including goalkeeper Conor Mitchell, nestling into the bottom corner for his fourth league goal of the season.

In a dramatic climax substitute Rhyss Campbell secured the victory in injury time. Mitchell brought Campbell down in the box, and the winger stepped up to calmly convert from 12 yards, sealing the three points for Rodney McAree's side.

However, City's early frustration was palpable as Fra McCaffrey squandered a golden opportunity in the seventh minute. Despite Adam Salley's precise delivery, McCaffrey's close-range shot failed to find the target, much to the home fans' disappointment.

Further anguish ensued for Gavin Dykes' side just before half-time. Brandon Doyle dropped the shoulder past John Scott before setting up Liam Bagnall inside the penalty area, but Declan Dunne's heroics in the Swifts goal denied Newry City a lifeline.

There was to be more disappointment for City when Barney McKeown was given his marching orders for something he said to the referee's assistant following the awarding of the Swifts penalty.