Tiernan Lynch hails exciting young player who 'can mix it with the best of them'
Conor McKendry's late goal secured a first league win of the season for Larne and a vital win at that as they shot down Linfield at Windsor Park.
The reigning champions had to dig deep in the second half as the Blues ramped up the pressure. But with 11 minutes to go it was the Invermen who made the breakthrough thanks to McKendry's goal.
Boss Tiernan Lynch was delighted with the character his side showed to stay in the game and secure the points. And Matty Lusty, whose run and shot set up the chance for McKendry, earned special praise from his manager.
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"He’s a very exciting young player with bags of ability, he just needed games," Lynch told BBC Sport NI. "He just needed to go and play senior football. The best teacher of the game is obviously ‘the game’, and that’s what he needed when he went to Dungannon last year. He showed last year that he can play at this level and score goals at this level. He’s shown he can mix with the best of them."
Speaking about the game Lynch said: "You’re never confident when you’re under pressure. There are top players at Linfield and they’ve been scoring a lot of goals of late, but they’re [Larne players] a resilient bunch in there and they work very hard at what they do.
"Great credit to them. They stood firm. You’re always going to have difficult periods when you come to Windsor Park. They’re a top side and David [Healy] is a top manager. You’ve got to be able to ride the storm at times. Sometimes you come through them, sometimes you don’t. You’ve also got to make sure that when you get your chances, you take them," added Lynch.
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