Larne claimed their first victory in the defence of the Irish Premiership title with a 2-1 success over Glentoran at Inver Park.

The home side, whose domestic campaign has been delayed by European commitments, took the lead early in the second half through Sean Graham.

A second goal by Matty Lusty looked to have given Larne some breathing space before Aaron McEneff responded with a late penalty for the visitors.

The result means Glentoran – who handed a first start to high-profile new signing Conor McMenamin – have lost three of their opening five league games.

In a cagey opening period, Larne's Ronan Doherty played a through ball into the path of Paul O'Neill but the striker's early snap-shot went wide of the near post.

In another break from midfield, Dylan Sloan advanced forward before firing a left-footed shot which had Glentoran keeper Billy Crellin scrambling across his goal before the ball eventually drifted wide.

Larne thought they had gone in front when Lusty raced onto a Sloan pass and rounded Crellin before slotting home but the striker was adjudged to be offside.

At the other end, Ben Gallagher met a McEneff cross with a downward header which bounced up off the turf before clipping the top of the crossbar on its way over.

Glentoran had three players cautioned by referee Tony Clarke in the opening period, with some observers feeling that Jordan Stewart was fortunate to escape a greater sanction for a robust challenge on Tomas Cosgrove.

Glens skipper Marcus Kane then played a neat-one two with McEneff before firing a low shot which Larne keeper Rohan Ferguson had to dive to his left to hold.

As the visitors began to look threatening, Ryan Cooney intercepted a pass and embarked on a strong run before feeding the ball to McMenamin whose fierce shot was beaten behind at the near post by Ferguson.

Larne broke the deadlock six minutes into the second period when Chris Gallagher played a pass into the run of Graham and the left-back strolled through a static Glentoran defence before guiding a shot beyond Crellin.

The home side deservedly doubled their advantage on 72 minutes when they chased down Ethan Brown, forcing the on-loan Kilmarnock defender to lose possession.

Paul O'Neill seized upon the loose ball and threaded a pass to Lusty who ran into the area to fire an angled shot home.

Glentoran offered little in response but were handed a lifeline with two minutes left when they were awarded a penalty for a challenge by Dan Bent on Stewart.

McEneff fired the spot kick low to Ferguson's right to halve the deficit but Glentoran ran out of time as they suffered back-to-back league defeats.

Larne manager Gary Haveron: "It should never have been a 2-1 game. It should have been a lot more comfortable. than the scoreline suggests. I felt we were the dominant team, on the front foot.

"We made it a little bit more nervy than it needed to be in the last few minutes of the game but it was an excellent display from us - everything you want to see from your team - hunger, desire to win the ball back, tempo, enthusiasm, how we played the game.

"People maybe thought we might be a soft touch given what happened in Europe but the boys showed why they have been champions in three of the past four years."

Glentoran assistant manager Paddy McCourt: "First half I thought there wasn't much in it. Larne had the bulk of possession without really hurting us too much.

"Second half we gave away two really sloppy goals and when you play against really good sides, especially away from home, you'll get punished.

"We gave it a wee bit of a go at the end and could maybe have nicked a point, but overall disappointed."