Uefa Champions League first qualifying round, second leg
Larne (0) v RFS (3) (Wednesday, 8pm)
THE highest peak in Latvia is Gaizinkalns which stands at just 312 metres - for reference, Slieve Donard is 850 metres tall – but Larne’s Latvian mountain must feel more like Everest.
The Inver Reds have left themselves with an-almost insurmountable climb to get back into their Uefa Champions League first qualifying round tie after falling to a 3-0 defeat to RFS last week.
Tiernan Lynch’s men would have been hoping to at least come back to Inver Park with the game still very much on the line, like they did last year when they held HJK to a 1-0 win in Helsinki.
However, a first-half strike from Martins Kigurs and a header and free-kick after the break from Daniels Balodis and Stefan Panic saw the hosts put one foot in the second round.
Speaking to club media after the game at LNK Sporta Parks last week, Tomas Cosgrove was disappointed in the showing he and his team-mates put in:
“They are obviously a quality side but I don’t think we showed our true selves out there. Unfortunately, I think the occasion got the better of us.”
The back-to-back champions are still expecting a record European attendance tomorrow evening at their home and the supporters are clearly still looking forward to the prospect of Champions League football at Inver Park for the first time.
They took a sizeable support to Riga last week and Cosgrove was full of praise for those that made the journey:
“All of the boys are extremely grateful to those that made the journey as we know it isn’t easy. They made so much noise and were brilliant despite the result. Clapping us off at the end shows what Larne fans are all about.
It is worth noting that RFS are just over halfway through their domestic season having played 22 games and they sit top of the Virsliga with a seven-point cushion on rivals Riga FC.
They also progressed to the quarter-finals of the Latvian Cup on Saturday after beating BFC Daugavpils 2-1, which extended their unbeaten run to 13 in all competitions.
Tiernan Lynch was also speaking to the club’s media channel and touched on the difference in sharpness between the two teams in the first leg:
“They were zipping the ball about the pitch and played with a lot of confidence and I don’t think we were able to keep up with that. There were a lot of tired legs and I think we looked a bit rusty.”
Lynch, who has been in charge at Inver Park since 2017, also spoke of the need for his players to believe that they are good enough to compete at this level and treat the second leg in isolation to give the bumper home crowd something to cheer about.
A positive is that if they do fall at the first hurdle here they have been granted a bye into the third qualifying round of the Uefa Europa Conference League.
The game will be streamed via the club’s social media channel.