Early chance for Linfield as Eetu Vertainen finds Matthew Clarke down the left hand side with the full back getting his delivery in first time.

Robbie McDaid was on his toes in the box and got his head to the cross, but couldn't quite direct his headed effort on target from a tight angle.

Portadown kicked off at Shamrock Park. The pitch looks very bobbly and the home side have started promisingly and enjoyed the majority of possession so far.

We're underway here at Windsor Park with the visitors kicking us off.

Paul O'Neill gets us under way here at Solitude.

We're underway at the Showgrounds with the temperature barely scraping about zero degrees and a thick fog sweeping in.

The home side get us underway here at Taylors Avenue.

Can Carrick gain their first three points since November or will Crusaders be the victors and take all three crucial points back to North Belfast?

Former Northern Ireland goalkeeper Pat Jennings says he is "absolutely delighted" after being made a CBE in the New Year Honours list.

Jennings won five trophies with Tottenham and Arsenal and earned 119 caps for Northern Ireland.

Read more here

Image source, BBC Sport

Gerard Lawlor, chief executive of the Northern Ireland Football League, says he hopes the Irish Premiership will be fully professional in five years.

Of the 12 teams - Linfield, Larne and Glentoran - are full-time and Crusaders are three-quarters professional.

"As CEO, I would like to see the men's Premiership become an all full-time league within a number of years," Lawlor told BBC Sport.

"We need to start planning for the clubs who aren't full-time.

Read the full story here.

Former Northern Ireland captain Gail Redmond says it is "mind-blowing" to see how far women's football has developed in the country.

Redmond was made a MBE for services to women's football in the New Year Honours list.

Read more here

Image source, BBC Sport

The new year signals the start of the January transfer window and relegation-threatened Portadown have been busy already as Niall Currie aims to strengthen his squad in the fight for survival.

Currie has raided Dundela - the team he left to take over at Shamrock Park - with Lee Chapman, Eoghan McCawl and Chris Rodgers all being signed.

Coleraine pair Aaron Canning and Cathair Friel have also joined the Ports, but striker Adam Salley will not return from his loan spell at Ards after rejecting a request from his parent club.

Elsewhere, Coleraine have also taken a player away from Dundela after signing forward Eamon Fyfe on a two-and-a-half-year deal, while Ballymena United have signed Robert McVarnock from Newington.

Darren Murphy
Sportsound summariser at Solitude

Linfield have got themselves back into the title race and that's having an effect on Larne and Cliftonville.

The big thing today is, if Cliftonville and Linfield win today they'll all be tied on 45 points. I think today is a defining day. I doon't think the league will be won or lost today but it'll put down a big marker.

It's a big game here at Solitude. We're in for a good one, both teams who play the game the right way and I think there will be goals.

If there’s such a thing as a guarantee of goals anywhere today, it’s likely to be at the Ballymena Showgrounds.

The arrival of 2023 means it’s now close to a DECADE since there was a scoreless Premiership match at the Warden Street venue!

March 9, 2013, was the last time a league game finished nil-nil at Ballymena.

The sides in action that day? Yep, Ballymena and Glentoran!

Windsor Park takes centre stage as the Irish Premiership returns with it’s first round of fixtures of the New Year.

It’s second versus fifth as Linfield welcome Coleraine to Windsor Park in the first round of Irish Premiership fixtures in the New Year.

The south Belfast side are looking to keep the pressure on Larne and are unbeaten in their last ten league games, winning eight. For the visitors, they too are in good form, winning their last four Irish Premiership matches without conceding.

Both of these teams were triumphant on Boxing Day in their respective derby fixtures. Eetu Vertainen’s last gasp strike meant Linfield took all three points on their travels to The Oval when facing Glentoran in the ‘Big Two’ clash.

For the Bannsiders it was also derby delight as they beat Ballymena United 2-0.

In terms of line-ups this afternoon, David Healy makes one change to the side that beat Glentoran on Boxing Day. In comes Michael Newberry for the injured Jimmy Callacher.

Oran Kearney makes three changes to the side that won on Boxing Day. Gareth Deane, Conor McDermott and Josh Carson make way for the incoming Martin Gallagher in goal, Lee Lynch and Aaron Jarvis.

Linfield: Johns, Roscoe, Newberry, Shields, Cooper, McDaid, M.Clarke, Finlayson, Mulgrew (c), Vertainen, Palmer.

Subs: Walsh, McClean, McKee, Devine, Pepper, Quinn, A.Clarke.

Coleraine: Gallagher, Kane, D.Jarvis, A.Jarvis, McKendry, Farren, O'Donnell (c), Lynch, Glackin, O'Mahony, Shevlin.

Subs: McDowell, Mullan, Brown, Lowry, McLaughin, McCrudden, Fyfe.

Image source, BBC Sport

Glentoran boss Mick McDermott insists he is not concerned about his side's disappointing run which has seen them take just four points from their last seven games.

The Glens travel to Ballymena today hoping to bounce back from their Boxing Day loss to arch-rivals Linfield.

"If we were playing really poorly then I would be concerned because you would be looking and saying 'who do I put in here?'," said McDermott, speaking after the Linfield game.

Read more from McDermott here.

The Ballymena pitch got the all clear but now the fog is rolling in.

It looks okay at the moment, but certainly one to keep an eye on.

It's ninth versus fourth in the first game of 2023 at the Loughview Leisure Arena.

The home side make two switches to the starting 11 which drew with Larne a week ago with Mark Surgenor and Andrew Mitchell replacing Reece Glendinning and Steve Gordon.

Stephen Baxter makes one change to his side after beating Cliftonville in the north Belfast derby on Boxing Day.

It comes in midfield with Ross Clarke replacing Declan Caddell.

Crusaders: Tuffey, Burns, Hegarty, Robinson, Lowry, Lecky, Forsythe, O’Rourke, Winchester, Heatley, Clarke.

Subs: Murphy, Ebbe, Owens, Caddell, McMurray, Larmour, Weir.

Carrick Rangers: Ross Glendinning, Forsythe, Stewart, Surgenor, Cushley, Gawne, Kelly, Cherry, Mitchell, Tilney, Anderson.

Subs; Hogg, Kalla, Buchanan-Rolleston, McKiernan, Gillen, Andrews, Chapman.

Image source, BBC Sport

The league's bottom two meet at Shamrock Park.

Bottom-placed side Portadown find themselves nine points behind Dungannon Swifts who occupy 11th place.

Even at this stage of the season you feel it’s a must-win for the Ports to stay in touch with the teams above them.

Form-wise Portadown have one win in their last six league games, defeating Ballymena Utd in early December.

Their most recent result was a 2-1 defeat away to Mid Ulster rivals Glenavon on Boxing Day.

Dungannon Swifts enter the fixture with three league wins in their last six fixtures.Their most recent result was a 2-0 home win against Newry City on Boxing Day.

The sides have already met once this season in the Premiership, Dungannon defeating Portadown 2-0 at Stangmore Park.

Portadown make three changes from the Glenavon defeat. New signings Lee Chapman, Christopher Rodgers and Eoghan McCawl come in to replace Paddy McNally, Gledis Cakaj and Mark Russell.

Dungannon Swifts make one change. Caolan Marron comes in to replace Garry Breen.

Portadown:Barr (GK), Upton, Balde Almanzar, McKeown (C), Moorhouse, Chapman, Archer, Jordan, Rodgers, Jenkins, McCawl.

Subs:McKenna, Beverland, Wilson, Stedman, Russell, Teggart, Friel.

Dungannon Swifts:Dunne (GK), J. Scott, Marron, Knowles (C), McCready, O'Connor, Campbell, Walsh, McGee, Animasahun, Bruna.

Subs:Nelson, Mayse, Gallagher, Barr, McGinty, Cushnie, S. Scott.

Image source, BBC Sport

Third-placed Cliftonville host league leaders Larne at Solitude as Paddy McLaughlin’s side look to bounce back from their 3-0 Boxing day derby defeat by north Belfast rivals Crusaders and go level with Tiernan Lynch’s men.

The Invermen will be looking to get back to winning ways themselves after drawing with Mid-Antrim rivals Carrick Rangers as they aim to extend their lead over Cliftonville to six points in their first outing of 2023.

These two have had close encounters since Larne’s rise under owner Kenny Bruce with Cliftonville winning two of last five league meetings with two draws.

The one Larne win in those five meetings came earlier this season when they ran riot in a 4-0 victory.

Paddy McLaughlin makes three changes from Boxing day with Jamie McDonagh, Odhran Casey and Colin Coates being replaced by Levi Ives, Rory Hale and Ronan Doherty with Coates and Casey on the bench and McDonagh not part of today’s squad.

The visitors make one change with Mark Randall drafted in for Shea Gordon who is named on the bench alongside former Cliftonville winger Thomas Maguire who is in line to make his debut for the league leaders.

Cliftonville: Gartside, Ives, Addis, Gallagher, Rory Hale, Lowe, Doherty, Gormley, Turner, Ronan Hale and Sean Moore.

Subs: Donnelly, Chris Curran, Ryan Curran, Robinson, Storey, Casey, Coates.

Larne: Ferguson, Want, Sule, Randall, O’Neill, Bonis, Doherty, Aaron Donnelly, Bolger, Millar and Cosgrove.

Subs: McIntyre, Kelly, Kearns, Gordon, Maguire, Hughes and Lusty.

Image source, BBC Sport

Ballymena and Glentoran have yet to complete a league meeting this season after their game at the Oval in September was abandoned after just 16 minutes due to heavy rain.

Even this one was in doubt this morning but it has survived a pitch inspection.

These sides will become familiar opponents as they are scheduled to face each other three times in the Premiership in the next six weeks.

Ballymena boss David Jeffrey makes three changes from the side which lost at Coleraine on Boxing Day as Ryan Waide, Jordan Gibson and the transfer-listed Conor Keeley come in at the expense of Ross Redman, Dougie Wilson and Paul McElroy. New signing Robbie McVarnock is named among the substitutes.

Glentoran were also beaten on December 26 and manager Mick McDermott responds by making two changes.

In come Sean Murray and Danny Purkis for Bobby Burns and Hrvoje Plum.

Ballymena United: O'Neill, Place, Whiteside, Keeley, Graham, McCullough, Nelson, Kelly, Waide, Gibson, McDaid.

Subs: WIlliamson, Redman, McElroy, Kane, Henderson, McGrory, McVarnock.

Glentoran: McCarey, Marshall, McCullough, McClean, Kane, Clucas, Murray, Devlin, R Donnelly, J Donnelly, Purkis.

Subs: Webber, Roy, Murphy, Smith, Plum, Wightman, McLaughlin.

Image source, BBC Sport