ON behalf of the directors, players and all the staff at Larne Football Club, I would like to wish our supporters a Happy New Year in the hope that you have enjoyed the festive season thus far.
Naturally, we shall be doing all we can to ensure 2020 gets off to the best possible start with victory over Ballymena United at The Showgrounds in another hugely important Danske Bank Premiership fixture.
Beyond that comes our collective ambition for the Club to continue its progress on and off the pitch and ensure it becomes a competitive force, within what most concede is the toughest Danske Bank Premiership in memory.
For Larne fans, 2019 was a tumultuous year, dominated by winning the Bluefin Sport Championship and followed by the roller coaster start to establishing ourselves as a Premiership team.
It now sits with Kenny as owner, Niall as General Manager, myself as Chairman and Tiernan as manager to continue to lead the progress which has enabled us to establish ourselves within this ferociously competitive division.
We must do so while tackling the challenges of transition.
As Tiernan has made clear and I can only re-emphasise, our target now is to do all we can to recruit players who will challenge for immediate first team selection. We are not of a mind to do deals simply for the sake of adding to numbers and if those deals are not there, we will keep our powder dry.
It is far from easy, of course, because the higher the grade of footballer you pursue, the greater the competition. But those are our ambitions and we are working extremely hard to realise them, both now in the January window and beyond.
Giving Tiernan the tools to continue the progress on the pitch which we have seen over 2019 will be one of the key factors in another of our prime targets – to increase attendances at Inver Park whilst growing the club as a recognised brand.
To the supporters who have stood through the wind, rain and shine of another year in the life of Larne Football Club, our sincerest thanks.
Yes, there have been a few disappointments, but I think you would agree there have been many highs, along with some genuinely encouraging and exciting signs of a team and club ‘on the up.’
We shall do all we can to keep it that way.
Regards,
Gareth Clements
Chairman.
