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Indeed, David Jeffrey's side have secured a third straight League and Cup double, a feat last achieved way back in the 19th century!

Coleraine, competing in their third final this decade, can hold their heads high though after a commanding first half performance during which they could well have put the game beyond reach.

David Patton almost opened the scoring for the Bannsiders after 12 minutes when he jinked his way into the box to deliver a left-foot effort which Blues 'keeper Alan Mannus met with an outstanding save despite initially going the wrong way.

But that provided only temporary respite for Linfield when, on 19 minutes, Paddy McLaughlin fired Coleraine into the lead with a low shot from the edge of the area when the ball fell to him after a Marty Hunter header was cleared off the line by Aidan O'Kane.

Indeed, Coleraine came within a whisker of doubling their lead in the quarter-of-an-hour or so that followed with Stephen Carson, Jody Tolan and Patton all going close but somehow the Blues rearguard held out through a combination of goalline clearances and desperate defending - and it was these missed opportunities that the Bannsiders were going to bitterly regret.

The closest Linfield came to levelling in the first half was a 44th minute Oran Kearney header from a Kris Lindsay cross which drifted wide but that all changed in the minutes immediately after the break when Peter Thompson bagged a double inside three minutes.

He grabbed the equaliser for Linfield on 49 minutes. Glenn Ferguson showed his experience to dummy the ball into Thompson's path who fought off the attentions of McLaughlin to bring the ball forward and slot past Davy O'Hare from 10 yards.

Then, just three minutes later, Thompson did it again when he once more got on the end of a Ferguson ball to deliver a right-foot shot beyond the advancing 'keeper.

It was almost game over on 70 minutes when Mark Dickson floated a ball over from the right for Winkie Murphy to head narrowly over while, with eight minutes remaining, Ferguson had an effort blocked by Kyle McVey.

As it turned out, though, that Thompson double whammy proved too much for a Coleraine side that offered very little in what was a desperately disappointing second half showing for them.

But all credit to Linfield who came from being out on their feet at the break to show just why they are the champions.

Coleraine: O'Hare, Clanachan, Hunter, McVey, D. Patton, Tolan, McCallion, Carson, P. McLaughlin, Watt, Neill subs McCormick, Dooley (replaced Watt 75), R. McLaughlin, Hutchinson, Ewart

Linfield: Mannus, Gault, Murphy, Kearney, Ferguson, Bailie, Lindsay, McAreavey, O'Kane, Thompson, Mulgrew subs McShane, Curran (replaced Kearney 87), Dickson (replaced McAreavey 46), Stewart, Downey

Referee: David Malcolm (Bangor)

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