Shaun Leppard's last-ditch tackle denies Philip Lowry!

The midfielder looked certain to score after racing behind the Reds' defence, but Leppard comes to the rescue.

With perfect timing, the defender slides in, dispossessing Lowry just as he's about to shoot.

Referee Declan Hassan blows the whistle and we are off and running at Windsor Park for what could be manager David Healy’s final game in charge of Linfield.

Referee Ian McNabb starts the action at Stangmore Park.

Dungannon have won the last two league tussles between these sides but before that, Ballymena had been unbeaten in the previous 12 league meetings between the pair.

Who will emerge victorious today?

There has been a late change for Dungannon as John McGovern is replaced in the starting line-up by Tomas Galvin, while Andrew Mitchell occupies Galvin's place on the bench.

Niall Quinn gets us underway at a bright but breezy Showgrounds.

Tony Gorman
BBC Radio Ulster summariser

It remains to be seen whether Coleraine can really challenge at the top end because the last couple of seasons have been really disappointing for them.

Shane McCabe
BBC Radio Ulster summariser

I think Crusaders have signed a couple of new players who are yet to prove it and they need goals, last year they lacked in the goal-tally.

I'm hoping we'll see creativity, a bit of blood and thunder and I am going to go for a Crusaders' win.

Off we go in the first North Belfast derby of the season!

Whose perfect record will remain intact at full-time?

Hit thumbs up for the Crues or thumbs down for the Reds.

Tony Gorman
BBC Radio Ulster summariser

Just thinking outside the box but there is a manager, Ian Baraclough, who did the Northern Ireland job. Baraclough was the manager of Sligo Rovers and was very successful there, they won a Premier Division title and Sligo's first title since 1976.

Another name I wouldn't rule out as well, who has a very successful managerial career and also has a link to Linfield, is Tommy Wright.

Declan Devine makes a seventh summer addition to his Glentoran squad with the signing of Kodi Lyons-Foster.

How will the Carrick striker fare this afternoon with his predictions?

Image source, BBC Sport

Shane McCabe
BBC Radio Ulster summariser

I could see him going there and being very well received, getting them promoted and then looking for another job.

Ideally you'd like to see someone of his stature coming back and managing Northern Ireland in some future years. I'd say he has his plans laid out and this could be just part of it.

I would be delighted to see him get the challenge and do well, but I think a lot of Linfield supporters would be wondering who would be stepping into those shoes as they are big shoes to fill.

It's the end of a three-game week so both managers opt to make wholesale changes to their starting line-ups today.

Bannsiders' boss Dean Shiels makes three changes to the team which drew 0-0 at Glentoran on Tuesday night.

Top scorer Matthew Shevlin isn't included in the squad while Graham Kelly and Ciaron Harkin drop to the bench.

In their place come Dean Jarvis and midfielders Mackenzie Carse and Kyle Spence, making their first starts for the club since arriving in the summer.

Glenavon manager McDonnell goes one better with four changes to the side which went down heavily at home to Linfield in midweek.

James Carroll, Jamie Doran and Michael O’Connor start their afternoon on the bench but there is no place in the squad for experienced defender Mark Haughey.

They are replaced by Harry Lynch, Barney McKeown and Keith Ward with frontman Davy McDaid making a return to the club where he played last season.

Coleraine: Brown, Kane (capt), Jarvis, Boyle, Stewart, Campbell, Scott, Spence, Carse, McClelland, McGonigle.

Subs: Kelly, Harkin, McLaughlin, Gaston, Devine, Burns.

Glenavon: Deane, O’Sullivan, Marshall, Snoddy, McDaid, Campbell, Quinn (capt), Doona, Lynch, McKeown, Ward.

Subs: Byrne, Toure, Atherton, Carroll, O’Connor, Doran, Wilson.

Referee: Ross Dunlop.

Image source, BBC Sport

Matty Lusty says Larne still believe they can qualify for the Uefa Conference League despite falling to a 2-1 defeat in the first leg of their play-off against Lincoln Red Imps.

Lusty's superb first-half strike handed the Irish Premiership champions an early advantage in Faro on Thursday only for Kike Gomez and Joe to turn the tie in the Gibraltar side's favour.

Lusty, 21, admits Larne gave the Imps "too much respect" in the first half but the forward is confident the Inver Park side can realise their European dream in front of their home fans next week.

"We believe in ourselves," Lusty told BBC Sport NI.

"We put Ballkani out and we can beat this team as well."

Read more here

Image source, PACEMAKER

Radio Ulster analyst Curtis Allen

Kurtis Forsythe's second booking probably was and the referee got it right. Good lad and a really nice fella, but I suppose for us it's not the first time he has got a silly booking or red and it's something that he needs to learn from as it turned the table on the match and it's disappointing.

Listen there were lots of decisions last night that maybe were right and wrong, but that's why we love football isn't it!

Two goals from striker David Fisher helped Glentoran recover from a goal down to beat 10-man Carrick Rangers 3-2 in Friday's Irish Premiership game at Taylors Avenue.

Read the match report here

Change could be afoot at Linfield with speculation surrounding the future of manager David Healy, but on the field the early league leaders name an unchanged side to that which defeated Glenavon 3-0 in their last league outing.

Loughgall meanwhile make two changes to the side that drew 2-2 with Portadown in midweek.

Conor McDermott and Ben Harvey make their way into the starting lineup for today’s game, with Luke Cartwright dropping to the bench and top scorer Jordan Gibson not making the matchday squad.

Linfield: C Johns (GK), S Roscoe-Byrne, E East, S Whiteside, C Shields, K Millar, K McClean, J Cooper, C McKee, E McGee, M Fitzpatrick

Subs: D Walsh (GK), C Allen, D McBrien, C Ballantyne, J Archer, R Annett, R McKay

Loughgall: N Gartside (GK), C McDermott, J Rea, B Murdock, T Kelly, P Andrade, R Waide, N Ferris, A Hoey, C Kerr, B Harvey

Subs: B Turker (GK), C McAleer, L Cartwright, A Balde Almanzar, J Boyd, A Towe, C McCloskey

Image source, BBC Sport

Crues manager Declan Caddell makes a single change from the side that secured a narrow 1-0 win over Ballymena United.

The experienced Jordan Forsythe returns to the starting XI after making a substitute appearance against the Sky Blues, with Harry Jewitt-White making way.

Meanwhile, Jim Magilton opts for a more significant shake-up, making three changes from the team that triumphed 1-0 over Dungannon Swifts on Tuesday evening.

Conor Pepper and Sean Stewart drop out, while Rory Donnelly misses out this afternoon due to an injury sustained against the Swifts.

They are replaced by Shaun Leppard, Ryan Curran, and Axel Piesold, who is handed his first start for the Reds.

Crusaders: Tuffey, Weir, Lowry, J. Stewart, Blaney, Forsythe, O’Rourke, Offord, Larmour, Franklin, Barr

Subs: Kerr, Jewitt-White, Owens, Smith, Donnelly, Nixon, James

Cliftonville: Odumosu, Addis, Newberry, Curran, Leppard, Lowe, Conlan, Gordon, Doherty, Piesold, Gormley

Subs: Breen, Pepper, Stewart, Ojo, Markey, McGuiness, Corrigan

Image source, BBC Sport

Carrick Rangers manager Stuart King said Glentoran should have been reduced to 10 men before his side had Kurtis Forsythe sent off in their 3-2 Irish Premiership home defeat at Taylors Avenue.

King was unhappy that Glentoran defender Marcus Kane only received a yellow card in the 32nd minute for a lunging tackle on Carrick's Joe Crowe, who had to go off after attempting to run off the effects of the challenge.

Forsythe was then sent off before the interval after being deemed to have committed two yellow-card offences on Jonny Russell in a four-minute period.

Read more here

Image source, BBC Sport

Dungannon's preparations for this game have been thrown into disarray with the news that four Swifts players have been involved in a road traffic collision on the way to today's game and best wishes are extended to the quartet.

That has prompted a late reshuffle for Rodney McAree with Patrick Grogan making his debut in goal, while Niall Owens and Bobby-Jack McAleese also start.

Ballymena make two changes as they aim to secure their first points of the campaign with Sam Johnston replacing Sean O'Neill in goal, while Andy Scott makes his full debut in place of Johnny McMurray.

Dungannon Swifts: Grogan, Scott, Curry, McGinty, Glenny, McAleese, Bigirimana, Owens, Dillon, Alves, McGovern.

Subs: Ritchie, J Scott, King, Taggert, Galvin, Hutchinson, Hegarty.

Ballymena United: Johnston, Brown, Loughran, O'Donnell, Nelson, Lafferty, Rocks, Scott, Carson, Kennedy, McCurry.

Subs: Davidson, Gawne, Barr, McCallion, McMurray, Stewart, Hood.

Image source, BBC Sport