'We're frustrated, but we can compete at this level'

"It's very frustrating. We're proud of the first 55 minutes. We battled really, really well and showed that we're able to compete at this level."

Tomas Cosgrove was in a defiant mood after Larne's 3-0 defeat by Molde, on what was a historic night for the Irish Premiership champions.

On paper, there can be few positives to take from a three-goal defeat. In reality, the underdogs represented the Irish Premiership with pride and distinction.

Going into the match with nothing to lose and everything to gain, Larne's Conference League debut in Norway was very much a game of two halves.

Before the match, manager Tiernan Lynch wanted his side to show that they were not just in Europe to make up the numbers.

He had spoken of his pride at reaching this milestone, and that feeling will only have grown after the opening 45 minutes.

Larne were superb, showing tremendous discipline to not only keep Molde out, but frustrate them.

Things dipped in the second half as legs grew weary, and the deflation from the players at the end spoke volumes about the expectations inside the group.

Star player - and wonderfully named - Magnus Wolff Eikrem powered home the opener as the hosts stepped up a gear after the restart.

Larne showed more ambition going forward after falling behind, but a killer blow was landed when the impressive Ola Brynhildsen capitalised on a fortunate bounce to curl home a second with 12 minutes left.

The dismissal of Conor McKendry for a wild tackle in injury time was a blow, as was the somewhat harsh third Molde goal from Frederik Ihler, but the damage had already been done by that point.

"I think it rocked us for a bit when we conceded it," captain Cosgrove said on the opener.

"We need to learn from our mistakes. If you make a mistake at this level then you are more or less punished.

"Every time you play a European team they keep the ball really well. If you lose it then you are running after it for about five minutes, so you need to keep the ball."

After watching the opening stages of the game, to the outsider, it looked like Larne had settled quickly.

You see it so often when a team gets to a big stage, they get carried away and are on the back foot from the off.

But when asked if it had been hard to park the significance of the occasion and focus on the 90 minutes ahead, manager Lynch said: "To an element, the truth is yes.

"We talked before, and said we had to park everything.

"We had to concentrate on the next 95 or 96 minutes before we went out.

"There's no excuses. I'm not saying if it hadn't happened, we'd have won the game or anything like that.

"We get it, it's good for the club, it's good for the league, it's good for football in Northern Ireland. We totally get that. We needed to focus."

The performance, particularly in the first half, has only enhanced the belief that Larne could cause a surprise or two in the rest of their campaign.

"We have to believe that," said Cosgrove.

"There's no point in turning up to the game if you don't think you can win or get a draw.

"Molde are a very good team, they are at this level every year. We have to learn from it and we'll hopefully fix it.

"We were competitive. That's what we wanted. They are probably one of the best teams we'll face.

"I don't think 3-0 reflected the game at all, and that's the frustrating part for me."

With their next European tie with Shamrock Rovers not until the end of the month, attention now turns back to the 'day job', if you will, as they host in-form Dungannon Swifts on Sunday.

It's a fixture that will have far less fanfare compared with their Conference League opener, but they know domestic success is crucial if they want to replicate their European journey for seasons to come.

Lynch says it will be "very different" as Dungannon look to capitalise on any lingering European hangover.

"I'm sure Dungannon will be thinking this is the perfect time to get Larne, with all the razzmatazz that went with it," he said.

"We have to be very focused and very single minded on what we need to do now.

"It's going to be a tough turnaround. It was a big shift from us against a top side, but we've got to be mentally strong and we've got to get back on there and do what we do best."