Nathan Rooney leaves Larne ‘by mutual consent’ with familiar face to take over the reins

Gary Haveron will take interim charge of first team affairs starting at Cliftonville on Tuesday evening

Nathan Rooney has left Larne ‘by mutual consent’ only one league game into the new Irish Premiership campaign.

The Englishman initially took over from Tiernan Lynch in November 2024, but his tenure was short-lived as he did not have the required pro-licence to lead the Invermen in their Conference League group phase games.

Rooney instead took up the role of Head of Football at Inver Park while he enrolled in the UEFA course with Gary Haveron appointed as Head Coach, leading the club to a second place finish in the league.

However, in May of this year the Invermen announced Rooney would be returning as first team manager.

Speaking at the time the 35-year-old said: “It has been a great pleasure to have worn the Larne badge over the last seven months, working closely with the board of directors, the talented group of players and all the technical staff for both the senior and scholarship teams who have shown so much enthusiasm and passion every day.

“I want to express my thanks to Gary Haveron who has been a great professional to work alongside and his work ethic to keep pushing the team has been second to none – I thank him for his support throughout this period. Gary will continue to play a major role as an experienced professional who is highly thought of in the local area and the Irish Premiership.

“Our job now is to hit the ground running in pre-season, develop our younger players, implement a playing style which can be exciting to watch and provide an energy which brings us all together on and off the pitch and we will see where it takes us.”

The former Bruno’s Magpies boss led Larne into their Conference League campaign this summer reaching the third round before they were knocked out by Primera League side Santa Clara.

As a result of their extended run in Europe Larne had only played one league game to date when they went down 1-0 to Coleraine.

But on the eve of their game at Cliftonville on Tuesday evening the club have announced a parting of the ways with Rooney.

A statement on the Larne FC website said: “Larne Football Club can confirm first team manager Nathan Rooney has left the club by mutual consent, with immediate effect.

“Following discussions between Nathan and the club, this is a decision taken in line with implementing our long-term football strategy and what we believe will gives us the best possible opportunity to succeed in the years to come, both on and off the pitch.

“We wish to extend our sincere thanks to Nathan for his hard work during his tenure at the club, which has included some historic moments for Larne FC and we wish him well for the future.

“Gary Haveron will take interim charge of first team affairs, while an extensive process to appoint a long-term successor gets underway. The club will be making no further comment at this time.”