Crusaders force a first corner of the match.

Ten minutes gone at Seaview where we await any sort of meaningful action.

Linfield hit Glenavon on a quick counter attack which almost results in a goal.

Callumn Morrison feeds Matthew Fitzpatrick down the right channel before the Blues striker crosses low and hard into the area.

The ball almost finds it's way through to Isaac Baird, who faces his former club for the first time this afternoon, but the visitors clear their lines.

Steven Scott whips in a fine cross, and Junior Uzokwe produces a superb turn six yards out to shake off his marker.

The frontman does the hard part, but he fires wide of the far post. A glorious opening for the Swifts, and Uzokwe knows he should be scoring.

Ryan McKay's corner is too heavy and flies onto the roof of the net.

Both sides have had a few half chances in the opening few minutes and have found space in good areas, but have struggled with their final touches.

Jack Keaney drives the free-kick low towards Declan Dunne’s right, but the effort bends past the post.

A rather uneventful opening five minutes at Windsor Park with nothing to report.

Gael Bigiramana goes into the book after dragging back Rory Hale as Cliftonville look to break.

That gives Jack Keaney the chance to stand over the free-kick, the defender having found the net from a set piece just last week.

Kealan Dillon lines up a free-kick from 25 yards, but a nick off the wall takes the sting out of it and PJ Morrison gathers comfortably.

First effort of the afternoon, and it goes the way of the Swifts.

Even enough start as both sides seek to get a foothold in this game.

Matthew Lusty cuts into the box and has a go, but his strike is deflected and Carrick are then able to clear their lines.

We're under way at Windsor Park as champions Linfield welcome early strugglers Glenavon, who are yet to secure a point this season.

Which way will this one go?

We're under way at Inver Park.

Can the Larne make it six victories in a row or will away side win at Inver Park for the first time in 10 years?

The whistle blows, and the ball is rolling at Stangmore Park.

The home side started this one with only one win and four goals from their opening seven league games, a return that leaves them second from bottom.

Is today the day the Swifts start to climb the table?

Ballymena's Ben Kennedy gets us under way on a pleasant autumnal afternoon in north Belfast.

Crusaders won all three meetings between the teams last season.

Will that pattern continue today or will Ballymena United record a first win in this fixture in almost three years?

Liam Beckett
Sportsound summariser

Larne are flying, they are a team in-form since Gary Haveron took over again. He should be in the frame to get the job permanently.

Two teams who played in midweek - and experienced different fortunes - meet at Seaview.

Crusaders, who lost heavily at Larne, make just the one change as top scorer Fraser Bryan comes in for Ross Clarke, who drops to the bench.

The big news, though, is that Finley Thorndike, sent off at Inver Park, plays.

The north Belfast club has confirmed it has appealed the midfielder's red card so he is eligible to play this afternoon.

Ballymena United, meanwhile, so impressive in Tuesday's 1-0 defeat of Linfield, unsurprisingly name an unchanged team.

Crusaders: Tuffey, Forsythe, Brooks, Thorndike, Dunlop, Easton, O'Rourke (c), Williamson, Bryan, Anderson, Lewis Barr.

Subs: Nimaga, Hamilton, Odhran McCart, Oilibhear McCart, Leon Barr, Clarke, Beattie.

Ballymena United: O'Neill (c), Nelson, Toure, Jarvis, Kennedy, O'Donnell, Clarke, McCurry, Edogun, McCallion, Hood.

Subs: Breen, Lafferty, Gould, O'Reilly, Thompson, McNickle, Corbally.

Referee: Ben McMaster.

Image source, BBC Sport

There is one alteration to the Larne side who made it five victories in a row when they defeated Crusaders last weekend with James Simpson starting and Benji Magee dropping to the bench.

Stephen Baxter also makes just the one change to the starting XI from last weekend and it's an enforced one with BJ Burns replacing winger Paul Heatley, who faces a spell on the sidelines after colliding with the perimeter wall against Bangor.

Larne: Ferguson, Ridley, Simpson, Gallagher, McKendry, Randall, S Graham, Nolan, Cosgrove, Bent, Lusty.

Subs: D. Graham, O'Connor, Magee, McEneff, Moore, Harkin, Wallace.

Carrick Rangers: Gartside, Scott, Callacher, McCullough, Burns, McKay, Steele, Crowe, Snoddy, Maciulaitis, Gibson.

Subs: Pengelly, Waide, Boyd, Buchanan-Rolleston, Cherry, James, Grills.

Image source, BBC Sport

Image source, Inpho

Dungannon Swifts manager Rodney McAree says everyone involved "has to do a wee bit more" if the club are to gather the points they need to pull clear of the foot of the Irish Premiership table.

Last season's Irish Cup winners and fourth-place finishers lie in 11th place in the league table with one win and six defeats from their first seven top division outings of the campaign.

Next up for the Stangmore Park side is the visit of in-form Cliftonville on Saturday.

"I think they [the players] have to change, we all have to change and do a wee bit more," McAree told BBC Sport NI.

"Everybody has to deliver a wee bit more, that's from myself down through the coaching staff and through to the players.

"Everybody has to work a wee bit harder and we have to try and fight our way out of it. Too often lately we haven't fought hard enough for ourselves and we haven't worked hard enough.

"First and foremost when you cross the white line you have to work extremely hard and we're not doing that well enough."

Dungannon beat Glenavon at Mourneview Park to secure their first points of the season but then lost at home to Crusaders last week.

"It feels like we were taking one step forward and then two steps back. We have to find that level of consistency, that level of performance that's going to help us climb up the table.

"Cliftonville have shown a determination and a grit within their camp that they want to grind out results but we'll collectively do our best to put things right."

Rodney McAree responds to Dungannon’s 3-0 loss to Crusaders with three changes, restoring Caolan Marron, Tomas Galvin and Bobby-Jack McAleese to the starting XI in place of Cahal McGinty, Thomas Maguire and Leo Alves.

Opposite number Jim Magilton makes two adjustments from the stoppage-time win over Ballymena United.

Harry Wilson is benched, while on-loan forward Brandon Bermingham is unavailable against his parent club. Shea Gordon and Ryan Curran come in, as the Reds look to sustain momentum against a Swifts side seeking a much-needed reaction from their defeat to the Crues.

Dungannon Swifts: Dunne, Scott, Kelly, Dillon, Alves, Glenny, McGinty, Maguire, Wallace, Bigiramana (capt), Uzokwe

Subs: Henderson, Marron, Galvin, Smith, McAleese, Mitchell, McAllister.

Cliftonville: Morrison, Pepper, Addis, Hale (capt), Curran, Gordon, Gormley, Glynn, Casey, Keaney, Fapetu.

Subs: Ridd, Wilson, Falls, McCay, Barr, Robertson, McWoods.

Image source, BBC Sport