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Steven Crawford

Andy Ryan fires out a warning to rivals as Larne seal title glory

Andy Ryan has sent out a defiant message to rival clubs after helping Larne secure the Irish Premiership title.

The Scottish striker, who has made such a telling impact since making the switch to Inver Park in January, netted the first goal against Crusaders to put one hand on the Gibson Cup.

Lee Bonis netted the clincher in the second half to set up wild scenes of celebration at the end.

Read next: Kenny Bruce reacts to Larne title win and 'money money money' jibe

Ryan was revelling in the scenes but was quick to point out that this is only the start for the Invermen.

"It's important that this isn't just a one season thing, we want to build on this," he said.

"We still have two games left so we want to build on that for next season and kick on and try to be even better again next season."

The recruitment of Ryan, Joe Thomson and Micheál Glynn in January really gave Larne a boost at a key point in the season, and the frontman paid tribute to the strength in depth at the club.

"Since I've come in I've realised what a fantastic squad we have here," he said.

"Starting elevens don't win league, it's squads that win leagues.

"When people have had to come on there's no dip in the quality or standard.

"We've a really hungry group here that drives each other on to try and be the best they can be and we've got our rewards for that."

The mentality of this Larne squad has been questioned at times during the season, none more so than after the Irish Cup semi-final defeat to Ballymena United.

Linfield also closed the gap at the top of the league in what was a difficult couple of weeks for Tiernan Lynch's side.

But Ryan said they used that hurt to kick them on and refocus their sights to secure the title.

"There was a lot of noise after the cup defeat, everybody was wanting us to fail," he said.

"It obviously hurt to lose that game, but to come back to the same venue tonight and put on such a professional performance was real credit to the boys.

"We could have come here tonight and sat in for a point, but credit to the boys we came here and to win the game and we did it."

Ryan is now looking forward to picking up the trophy in front of their fans at Inver Park on Friday night as he knows how much it will mean to the support.

"Me and Shaun Want live in Larne and when you're walking down the street you can see what it means to the people of the town," he added.

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