Inver talent augurs well for future

At the outset of the campaign Paul Millar insisted that he doesn’t like setting targets, not least because he wants to win every game. But pressed for a prediction, he said he definitely wanted to do better than the previous season and was aiming for a finish in the top six at least.

Here’s exactly what he had to say back in August before the first ball was kicked in anger: “When I took over last season, I think we were in the bottom three and we finished ninth. So we must do better than that to have made any progress. However, I would remind people that there was a massive gap between the team in ninth and the team in sixth spot – something like 12 points”.

Well, his team did do better, but only just as a win for Ballymoney United over Ballinamallard on Saturday proved costly for Larne as it dropped them into the bottom half of the table, down from seventh.

“Thankfully, we finished well with four wins and two draws in the last six games and that was very welcome because it had been a torrid time for everyone after what was a horrible spell during the latter part of February and the whole of March,” explained the Inver Park boss, at the end of the first term of his three-year contract.

“We were extremely optimistic at the start, with seasoned and quality personnel like Davy Larmour and Ryan Brown having given us every reason to be hopeful. And, up to October and even into mid-November, we were flying high. We were exceeding all our expectations and that was to come back to haunt us in a way.

“We sort of held our own in matches from there to Christmas and, one stage, had we beaten Bangor we could even have gone back to the top. The real problems started with the cup match against Newry, which cost us Anto Lagan for the rest of the season – although I don’t think we should really go back to talking about all that again. It was a dreadful time for the club.

“We had a series of matches against the top clubs in the division and, not only were we losing the games and dropping down the table, but there seemed to be red cards flashing in every outing – and supporters were understandably becoming disillusioned and I was getting a bit of stick as a result.

“But, while things weren’t good, we had positive outcomes as well when you think of the experience that was gained by the young players who were forced into action sooner than we’d have preferred.

“One incident in the match against Coagh last week illustrates what a great squad we have. I was contemplating substitutions when sitting in the dugout with Reece Moore and Liam Carland and they told me to let the young lads enjoy what they were doing – and Reece and Liam are only 21 themselves!” added Milla,r who will next week give us his assessment of the squad that finished the season in eighth spot in the table.