Coleraine triumphed against a frustrated Glentoran in a seven goal thriller which lived up to its match-of-the-day billing.
We’re sorry. This video is unavailable from your location.
Coleraine 4-3 Glentoran
The star of the show, yet again, was Rory Patterson who grabbed a hat-trick - his fourth of the season - to sink the club he has agreed to join in the summer.
The striker, who was jeered by a section of the fans at Seaview last week, had his name chanted by the Bannside faithful as he silenced his critics and took his tally for the season to 26 (a goal in the North West Cup final has been chalked off).
Patterson opened the scoring after 22 minutes when he shrugged off the challenge of Paul Leeman to slot the ball into an empty net.
The home side continued to dominate and went further in front on 38 minutes with Patterson tapping home from close range after excellent work by Stephen Carson.
Glentoran huffed and puffed without threatening too much but they grabbed a lifeline 60 seconds before the break when debutant Ciaran Martyn scored from close range with his first touch after replacing Shane McCabe just one minute earlier.
Nine minutes after the break and the visitors were on level terms when Johnny Black drilled a low free-kick from the edge of the box through the wall and past Davy O'Hare.
But within two minutes Coleraine had regained their lead and it was that man Patterson who did the damage again.
Marc Mukendi was the provider, displaying neat skill on the touchline before delivering a perfect cross which Patterson headed home.
Substitute Jody Tolan made the points safe seven minutes from time when he raced on to Patterson's pass and showed composure before slotting past James Taylor.
Another substitute, this time Glentoran's Andy Waterworth - linked with a switch to the Showgrounds as part of a proposed swap deal for Oval-bound Patterson - grabbed a consolation deep into injury time with a finish from a yard.
But it was too little too late and Coleraine held on for a deserved victory.
In doing so they complete a league double over Glentoran and now go into Wednesday's CIS Cup semi-final with Dungannon Swifts in buoyant mood.
Coleraine: O'Hare, Hegarty, McVey, Boyce (Tolan 61), Patterson, McCallion, Carson, Mukendi, Harkin, Canning, Dooley (Tommons 64). Not Used: McLaughlin, Neill, Gibson).
Glentoran: Taylor, Nixon, Leeman, McCabe (Martyn 43), Ward, Fordyce, Hamilton, Burrows (Waterworth 46), Fitzgerald (Clarke 79). Not used: Morris, Taylor).
Referee: Mark Courtney (Stewartstown).
© UTV News