soccer

Carrick beat Larne as Coleraine closes gap

Carrick Rangers defeated league leaders Larne 3-2, while Coleraine beat Ballymena United 1-0 to reduce the gap at the top of the Irish Premiership to just two points.

League leaders Larne suffered a 3-2 defeat to Carrick Rangers, ending their three-game winless run. Carrick took a commanding 3-0 lead through goals from Danny Gibson, Joe Crowe, and Paul Heatley before Larne responded with goals from Tiarnan O'Connor and Dan Bent.

Meanwhile, Coleraine defeated Ballymena United 1-0 at the Coleraine Showgrounds thanks to Will Patching's first-half goal, bringing them within two points of Larne at the top of the table with a game in hand.