Carrick Rangers held firm over the Roesiders by a single goal. Alie Gaston during Limavady United's match against Carrick Rangers Wednesday 19 August 2026 9:00 Despite pulling one back before the hour, Limavady United fell just short of securing their first Premiership point on Saturday. The Roesiders welcomed Stephen Baxter’s Carrick Rangers to their new pitch for their Premiership debut at the Limavady Showgrounds. Limavady started positively, with Alfie Gaston seeing an effort denied after Rodney Brown caused problems for the Carrick defence. However, Carrick scored twice in four minutes before half-time. Paul Heatley opened the scoring after meeting Jimmy Callacher’s through ball before Daire O’Connor found Aidan Steele, who doubled the visitors’ advantage from close range. Limavady responded shortly after the restart, with Philip Lowry laying the ball off for Gaston, who pulled one back for the hosts. The Roesiders then turned up the pressure in search of an equaliser, with John Butcher seeing an effort deflected for a corner before Sean Carlin fired over. Lowry came closest when his effort struck the crossbar. Despite creating several chances, Limavady could not find a second goal and remain pointless after their opening two Premiership fixtures. Manager Paul Owens believes there are plenty of positives to take from his young side’s performance. "It’s just a wee bit of belief that they need. We just have to take the belief from the positive parts." LIMAVADY: Gallagher, Farren, P. Lowry, S. Lowry, O’Donnell, Butcher, Brown, (Gaston 54’), Mullan, Carlin, Boyd SUBS Not Used: Doherty, Boorman CARRICK: Gartside, Place, Forsythe, Callacher, Gibson, Lecky, McCullough, (Steele 42’), Buchanan-Rolleston, (Heatley 38’), Snoddy SUBS Not Used: Agnew, Maciulaitis, Cherry, Hastings League standing: 2nd in Premiership, 6 pts, 2W-0D-0L from 2 games, recent form WW. Goals this season: 3 scored, 1 conceded (+2 goal difference). Next fixture: vs Portadown (away, 2026-12-19) (10th in the table).