Liam Beckett
Sportsound summariser

Linfield have really hit the ground running. What a great start, maximum points and just the one goal conceded and five scored.

I would worry slightly about Glenavon and the fact that they have nothing yet after two games. I know it's the early stages of the season, but there is an old saying in life that as well as winning becomes a habit so does losing and it does nothing for the players confident or the supporters.

And we're off!

Joel Cooper gets proceedings underway at a wet and windy Mourneview Park where the rain in now coming in sideways!

We are underway at Lakeview Park.

Matthew Shevlin gets us underway on a dry but blustery evening in east Belfast.

It's a first meeting of the teams since the European qualifier here back at the start of May, a game the visitors won 3-0.

Will Declan Devine's new-look Glentoran gain revenge for that reversal or will an equally unrecognisable Coleraine make it three league wins in a row against the Glens?

The whistle blows and we're underway in north Belfast.

Referee Shane Andrews blows his whistle and Ben Kennedy kicks off the action at the Ballymena Showgrounds.

Crusaders have won on seven of their last nine league visits to the Warden Street venue.

Can Declan Caddell’s men extend that impressive sequence tonight?

• Ballymena United have managed just one win in their previous seven Premiership contests against Crusaders at the Showgrounds.
• In the previous 59 Premiership meetings between Cliftonville and Dungannon Swifts there has never been a goalless draw
• Coleraine took just 19 points from their 18 away games in the Premiership last season which was the lowest total by any top six side last term.
• The last time the Loughgall and Portadown met in the Premiership at Lakeview Park was Decwember 2006 when the Ports ran out 3-0 winners.

Image source, Pacemaker Press

It's as you were for Glentoran this evening and why wouldn't it be after the east Belfast side got their first win of the campaign at Portadown on Saturday.

That means late match winner Niall McGinn has to be content with a place on the bench.

Visitors Coleraine make two changes after they, too, won last time out.

Jamie Glackin is suspended following his red card in the dramatic win over Ballymena United while Dean Jarvis drops to the bench.

In their place come defender Graham Kelly and striker Jamie McGonigle who sat out Friday night's derby to be at the birth of his second child.

Glentoran: Gyollai, Hvid, McClean, Sule (c), Connolly, Palmer, Donnelly, Kelly, Lindsay, Singleton, Jenkins.

Subs: Mills, Kane, Aouachria, McGann, Fisher, Russell, Douglas.

Coleraine: Brown, Kane (c), Boyle, Kelly, Stewart, Campbell, Scott, Shevlin, McClelland, Harkin, McGonigle.

Subs: Little, Jarvis, Spence, Carse, McLaughlin, Gaston, Devine.

Image source, BBC Sport

BBC iPlayer

You can now watch the build-up to the Glenavon v Linfield on BBC iPlayer or by clicking the play button at the top of this page.

Victory over Glenavon tonight would see Linfield move nine points ahead of Larne before the defending champions have even kicked a ball in league action this season.

With the first leg of their Uefa Conference League tie against Lincoln Red Imps to come on Thursday night, Tiernan Lynch's side European involvement means their first league game is presently scheduled for 1 September.

Linfield's trip to Mourneview Park, is the third of five games the Blues could play before Larne return to domestic action, but manager David Healy is not concerned about building a buffer over their title rivals.

"We'll worry about our game and worry about no more than that," he said.

Blues midfielder Kyle McClean will be putting league rivalries to one side come Thursday night.

"I’m sure [Larne] will fancy their chances and as a league I think everyone else will sit back and have a close eye on it," he said.

"It’s something as a nation and as a league we need [in order] to prove that the league is progressing, which I think it is."

Image source, Pacemaker Press

Much of the debate today was whether Benji Magee would be included in the Loughgall team but his expected move to Larne was completed earlier this afternoon.

Magee curled home the third goal of a 3-0 win on Saturday at Carrick Rangers and it proved to be a departing gift for the Lakeview Park side as his transfer to the champions is now complete.

Dean Smith's charges began their season with that impressive win and he makes just one change with Luke Cartwright coming in for Ben Murdock.

Portadown manager Niall Currie has made a couple of changes to the team that suffered last-gasp heartbreak against Glentoran at the weekend as they go in search of their first points of the season upon their return to the Premiership.

Luke Wilson replaced Liam Mullan in the second half and has earned the nod to start this evening, while Ahu Obhakhan drops to the bench with Ryan Mayse - who netted in the 2-1 defeat to the Glens - coming in.

Loughgall: Gartside, Rea, Kelly, Andrade, Waide, Ferris, Hoey, McAleer, Gibson, Kerr, Cartwright.

Subs: Turner, McDermott, Boyd, Harvey, Town, McCloskey, McMenemy.

Portadown: McCarey, Wilson, MacKinnon, Wilson, Chapman, Mayse, McCullough, Fyfe, Ukek, McCartan, Thompson.

Subs: Ray, Henderson, Wylie, Obhakan, Mullan, Duncan, Friel

Image source, BBC Sport

Coleraine midfielder Rhyss Campbell believes the club are already seeing the benefit of their switch to full-time football.

The Bannsiders travel to the Oval to face Glentoran buoyed by last week's derby victory over Ballymena that came despite playing for more than half an hour with 10-men after Jamie Glackin's red card.

"It shows the character of the team and we'll be looking to do the same on Tuesday night," said Campbell who scored his side's third in the 4-2 win.

Coleraine impressed Declan Devine with their work-rate against Ballymena, but the Glens boss wants to see his side build on their own late victory over Portadown.

"We know we're in for a really tough scrap," he said.

"I was very impressed by them and their willingness to dig in down to 10 men.

"I can't influence what Dean and his new squad are going to do. We've got to concentrate on what we do and that's being together, working hard, giving everything for the shirt and trying to play on the front foot."

Forward Benji Magee has joined Irish Premiership champions Larne from Loughgall for an undisclosed fee.

The much sought-after 22-year-old netted 16 league goals in Loughgall's first season back in the top division following their promotion from the Championship.

Magee was named NI Football Writers Young Player of the Season and also earned a call-up to Tommy Wright's Under-21 international squad.

He scored one of the goals in Loughgall's 3-0 win over Carrick Rangers at the weekend.

Confirmation of Magee's addition to Larne's squad comes the day after the east Antrim club revealed that they had signed midfielder Jordan McEneff from Derry City.

Magee is looking forward to pulling on a Larne shirt for the first time.

“It’s been a bit of hectic 24 hours, but I’m so happy to be here,” he said.

“I was delighted with how last season went, but I’ve come to Larne with the aim of winning trophies and more team awards.

“It’ll take a bit of time getting to adjusted to the full-time environment but I’m just eager to get started and get involved with everything.”

Image source, BBC Sport

Ballymena make one change from the side which lost at Coleraine on Friday night.

Defender Sean Brown, returning to the club on a season-long loan deal from Larne, starts in place of Aaron Jarvis, who was forced off early on in that game with a shoulder injury. Ballymena's other most recent recruit, winger Andy Scott, starts on the bench.

Josh Carson also starts as Ballymena have appealed the three-game ban handed out retrospectively to the midfielder followed a tackle on the opening day of the season for which he received a yellow card.

Crusaders also make one change from the side which won at Glentoran in the opening game of the league campaign as summer recruit Harry Jewitt-White replaces Jordan Forsythe.

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

Subs: Johnston, Gawne, Scott, Barr, Tennant, Stewart, Hood.

Crusaders: Tuffey, Blaney, Larmour, Barr, O'Rourke, Weir, Lowry, Stewart, Jewitt-White, Franklin, Offord.

Subs: Kerr, Forsythe, Owens, Smith, Donnelly, Nixon, James.

Image source, BBC Sport

Ballymena United have moved to further strengthen their squad by signing winger Andy Scott from Coleraine and bringing Larne defender Sean Brown back to the club on loan.

Coleraine confirmed that Scott, 24, had joined their derby rivals for an undisclosed fee, bringing to an end his 18-month stay with the Bannsiders after moving from Larne in the 2023 January transfer window.

Brown returns to Ballymena after his loan spell at the club during the second half of last season.

The Sky Blues have also placed defender Andy McGrory on the transfer list by mutual consent.

Image source, Pacemaker Press

As the Reds and Swifts prepare to clash at Solitude, both managers have made two changes each in the search for three points.

Jim Magilton, aiming to build on the momentum from their 2-1 victory over Glenavon, introduces Rory Donnelly and Kris Lowe to the starting XI, as Ryan Curran drops to the bench and Shea Kearney misses out entirely.

Meanwhile, Rodney McAree, determined to secure the visitors' first win of the campaign, looks to add pace to the Dungannon midfield.

Thomas Maguire and John McGovern are the duo called upon to replace Bobby-Jack McAleese and Andy Mitchell.

Cliftonville: Odumosu, Pepper, Stewart, Newberry, Donnelly, Lowe, Addis, Conlan, Gordon, Doherty, Gormley.

Subs: Breen, Curran, Ojo, Leppard, Piesold, Markey, Corrigan.

Dungannon Swifts: Dunne, S. Scott, Curry, Knowles, McGovern, Dillon, Alves, Glenny, McGinty, Maguire, Bigiramana.

Subs: Grogan, J. Scott, Owens, Hutchinson, McAleese, Mitchell, Galvin.

Image source, BBC Sport

Portadown boss Niall Currie says his side will have a "great chance" of securing their first win of the new Irish Premiership season against Loughgall if they replicate their "fantastic" performance in Saturday's loss to Glentoran.

While Niall McGinn's injury-time goal robbed the newly-promoted Ports of a point, Currie was buoyed by his players' efforts at Shamrock Park.

Loughgall opened their campaign with a 3-0 win over Carrick Rangers, but Currie insists his side are capable of taking three points away from Lakeview Park if they continue on their current trajectory.

"We're on the back of a really good performance, we'll shrug ourselves down but the performance was fantastic," said Currie.

"I don't think anyone would say otherwise. If we perform like that against Loughgall, we have a great chance. I know that for a fact.

"We know how difficult it's going to be. They're a fantastic team at home, but we made it difficult for Glentoran."

Glenavon are winless from their opening two Irish Premiership games, with Linfield the complete opposite, sitting on maximum points.

With that in mind, Stephen McDonnell makes two changes to his side who were beaten at Mourneview Park on Saturday by Cliftonville.

In come Matthew Snoddy and Jamie Doran from the start with David McDaid dropping to the bench and Jack Malone absent through injury.

With two wins from two league games so far, Blues boss David Healy sees no need to make any changes to his starting XI and thus names an unchanged side for the third consecutive game.

Glenavon: Deane, O'Sullivan, Marshall, Haughey, Snoddy, Campbell, Quinn, Doona, Carroll, O'Connor, Doran.

Subs: Byrne, Toure, McDaid, Lynch, Atherton, McKeown, Ward.

Linfield: Johns, Roscoe, East, Whiteside, Shields, Millar, McClean, Cooper, McKee, McGee, Fitzpatrick.

Subs: Walsh, Allen, McBrien, Ballantyne, Archer, Annett, McKay.

Image source, BBC Sport

neither Cliftonville manager Jim Magilton nor his Dungannon Swifts counterpart Rodney McAree have ruled out making additions to their squads before the transfer window closes next week.

"If a quality player becomes available we should be in the market and will be in the market right up until the window," said Magilton.

McAree will "hopefully" add to his panel at Stangmore Park but admits it can be difficult to compete with the wages on offer elsewhere.

"It's a difficult market, sometimes we feel as if we're priced out of it a little bit," said the former Glentoran boss.

"It probably comes from players on a full-time model, and fair play to them, but it has a knock-on effect down through the league and sometimes when it gets down to us, the player is priced out of our market.

"We're always looking, we're always looking to improve, and we'll continue to do so until the window shuts."

Image source, Pacemaker Press

Take a look back at some of the best goals scored in Saturday's games.