Johns, Hume, M.Clarke (Chadwick 85), Roscoe, Callacher, Mulgrew (Donnelly 85), Fallon, Shields, Millar (Quinn 66), Green (Stewart 66) and Manzinga
Stewart's late header earns point for battling Blues
It was the story of the substitutes as Linfield and Larne played out a cagey 1-1 draw in front of a bumper crowd at Inver Park. Former Linfield winger Navid Nasseri's 79th minute opener was cancelled out by a Jordan Stewart header on 88 minutes, as the Blues maintain their unbeaten start to the domestic campaign.
A full house in East Antrim waited with great expectations as two of the country's full time outfits came head-to-head in what was hoped would be a tantalising battle between excellent footballing sides. In truth, what resulted was a tense tactical battle with chances at a premium.
The first 45 minutes lacked the chances the crowd and neutral would have hoped for. On 6 minutes, former Linfield stopper Rohan Ferguson's attempted clearance ballooned off the chest of Matt Green and perilously out of play for a goal kick while after 10 minutes, Lee Lynch found himself with space to shoot, only to slice his shot harmlessly wide.
A good Larne attack on 17 minutes saw Ronan Hale scoop the ball wildly high and wide from a good position 16 yards from goal.
The game threatened to spring into life on 28 minutes as in-form Linfield striker Christy Manzinga burst down the left hand side only to be taken out by the onrushing Ferguson. The Larne keeper received a yellow card for the infringement whilst 3 other players (Kofi Balmer, John Herron and Stephen Fallon) received obligatory bookings for the "handbags" that followed.
Trai Hume's late cross in first half injury time was scrambled to safety by the Larne defence with Manzinga ready to pounce but in truth, neither side deserved to be ahead based on the fine balance of play before the interval.
Half Time: Larne 0 - 0 Linfield
It took until the 58th minute for either side to register a shot on goal. Tomas Cosgrove looked to take advantage of a gap in the Linfield defence, picking out Andy Scott 25 yards from goal, however despite the promising position, the Larne man's curled effort was punched out easily by Chris Johns in what was a relatively routine stop.
Trai Hume continues to impress his many admirers week-on-week, and on 61 minutes, he superbly cut out yet another Cosgrove delivery from the right with Ronan Hale ready to take advantage in the middle.
The difference, albeit indirectly, came when both managers utilised their benches on 66 and 68 minutes. Tiernan Lynch introduced David McDaid and Navid Nasseri whilst David Healy brought on Jordan Stewart for Kirk Millar.
The home side's change paid dividends in the 79th minute when McDaid got the ball down and poked an inviting through ball to Nasseri who took his time, waiting for Chris Johns to commit before firing into the bottom right hand corner from 14 yards. It was a hammer blow to Linfield who had looked relatively comfortable with the attacking intent from Larne up to that point.
Linfield, keen to make an immediate response, saw Jimmy Callacher's stretching back post header drop just over the crossbar but when Marty Donnelly came on in the 85th minute, in place of Jamie Mulgrew, the stage was set for a big finish.
The Blues won a free kick on the right in the 88th minute and up stepped the former Larne winger Donnelly to deliver a pinpoint cross right on the head of Jordan Stewart who duly obliged, heading past Ferguson and sending the packed stand full of Linfield supporters into raptures.
Both sides looked content with their point after the late drama and Linfield now sit in second place, just one point behind the league leaders Cliftonville. Next up for David Healy's side is a home match against Dean Shiels' Dungannon Swifts side this Saturday.
Full Time: Larne 1 - 1 Linfield
LinfieldFC.com Man of the Match: Trai Hume
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