Coleraine and Larne play out stalemate at Ballycastle Road

Irish Premiership Coleraine 0 - 0 Larne FT Title contenders Coleraine and Larne fought out a goalless draw in front of a huge crowd at the Ballycastle Road Showgrounds. The Bannsiders began brightly but Matthew Shevlin and Joel Cooper both passed up good openings in the first 45 minutes. Larne fought their way into the game after the break and may have left with all three points but for Coleraine keeper Lewis Webb. He produced a fine first half stop to deny Matty Lusty and somehow got his fingertips to a Conor McKendry effort destined for the top corner. Incredibly, Ruaidhri Higgins' side failed to score in their first game at home this season - after finding the net in every one of their 18 home fixtures last season. The home side dominated possession in the opening half but had to wait until just before the half hour for their first real chance. Shevlin played a clever ball into the patch of strike partner Cooper who controlled the ball before getting his shot away, but Larne goalkeeper Rohan Ferguson was out quickly to block. Minutes later Ferguson produced another fine stop, diving low to his left to palm away a Cooper strike, Shevlin unable to direct the rebound on target. Shevlin again passed up an opportunity just before half-time, directing his lob wide of the far post, after Cooper this time turned provider. At the other end, Webb, deputising for the injured Ryan Schofield, produced a fantastic reflex save to deny Lusty from point blank range following sterling work from Dylan Sloan in a rare Larne foray forward. Will Patching flashed a free-kick just over the crossbar from the edge of the penalty area as Coleraine picked up where they had left off before the break. But it was visitors Larne who came closest to scoring through second half substitute McKendry. The former Coleraine winger's shot from just outside the penalty area appeared to be heading towards the top corner only for Webb to get his fingertips on the effort and deflect away for a corner. Opposite number Ferguson was then alert to turn away a deflected Conor McMenamin effort after the NI international, on as a second sub, cleverly created space for the shot. Larne thought they had struck for what would have proved a dramatic winner in the dying minutes as second half sub' Monte Gibson raced clear into the Coleraine penalty area but Webb raced off his line to deflect the ball wide for a corner. There was still just time for Aidan Wilson to rifle a shot narrowly past the post on a day when defences dominated in a tense top-of-the-table clash.