The rise and rise of Larne FC

He may not be a Hollywood A-lister, but Kenny Bruce is a star in the eyes of followers of Larne Football Club. In the same way that actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney are transforming the fortunes of Wrexham in Wales, Bruce has put Larne FC firmly on the footballing map in Northern Ireland and beyond

- Paul Rutledge

Over the past five-and-a-half years, Bruce has pumped around £5 million into turning the club in the port town of Larne in County Antrim into a force to be reckoned with in the Northern Ireland Football League (NIFL) Premiership, the top tier of Northern Irish football.

For the first time in their 134-year history, Larne have become kings of Northern Irish football, wrestling the crown away from perennial champions Linfield who had won the league in the previous four seasons. During their 38 league matches in 2022-23, they won 25, drew eight and lost just five, giving them a six-point cushion over their nearest challengers.

So comfortable was their lead, they could afford to lose their final game of the season 3-0 to Coleraine. That was one of their heaviest defeats during a term in which they scored 64 goals and conceded only 22. A 15-game unbeaten run – including 11 wins and four draws – between January and April gave them an unassailable lead. A 2-0 victory over Crusaders in mid-April saw the side managed by Tiernan Lynch crowned champions for the first time.

But it’s not all about the senior men’s team for businessman Bruce. From the start, when he announced he wanted to invest in his hometown club, the aim was to improve things on and off the pitch. His money has seen a new state-of-the-art artificial surface laid at Inver Park, the club’s home ground, and another at a facility previously known as The Cliff, which now houses the Larne FC Academy.