BONIS BAGS A QUICK FIRE HAT-TRICK AS LARNE HIT FOUR

Lee Bonis bagged a second half hat-trick as leaders Larne swept to a convincing four-goal victory over Cliftonville at Inver Park.

Paul O'Neill crafted the first effort of the evening with a half volley from just outside the area after meeting an Aaron Donnelly cross while, not long after that, O'Neill then connected with a Tomas Cosgrove cross but again couldn't find the target.

Larne continued to look the more likely to find a way through with Bonis sending an effort narrowly past an upright, followed by a Ben Doherty attempt which went just the other side of the top corner.

It was perhaps no surprise, then, that Larne did find a way through on 35 minutes when O'Neill was rewarded for his earlier efforts after knocking home the loose ball from a Leroy Millar drive against the crossbar.

Tiernan Lynch's side might have doubled their advantage on the stroke of half-time when only a last ditch block from Jonny Addis denied Millar.

Cliftonville were reduced to ten men five minutes into the second half when Sean Moore was shown a straight red card by referee Steven Gregg following a challenge on Donnelly.

It took the home side 20 minutes to make the most of the extra man but when they did they did in clinical fashion with a superb Bonis hat-trick inside six minutes.

He made it 2-0 on 70 minutes after slotting past Nathan Gartside from O'Neill's pass, then bagged his second of the evening when he turned home the rebound after the Cliftonville keeper had saved his initial effort.

Then, with just under a quarter-of-an-hour remaining, Bonis claimed the match ball when again he pounced on the loose ball after O'Neill had a shot pushed out by Gartside.

Larne: Ferguson, Want, Sule, Randall, O'Neill, Bonis, Doherty, Donnelly, Bolger, Millar, Cosgrove subs McIntyre (not used), Kelly (replaced Doherty 77), Kearns (replaced O'Neill 77), Scott (replaced Randall 77), Hutchison (not used), Hughes (not used), Lusty (replaced Bonis 81)

Cliftonville: Gartside, Addis, Gallagher, Rory Hale, R. Curran, McDonagh, Lowe, Doherty, Turker, Ronan Hale, Moore subs Talley (not used), C. Curran (replaced Rory Hale 46), Robinson (not used), Gormley (replaced McDonagh 64), Storey (not used), Casey (replaced Gallagher 46), Coates (not used)