Carrick Rangers: Will County Antrim Shield win ‘kick-off’ season?

Not only was Carrick’s success elusive, they did it the hard way.

Their journey to the cup began with a win over Bangor – who have been promoted from the Championship but are impressive as they find their feet in League One.

A penalty shootout win over Glentoran followed and that was followed by a derby win over League of Ireland leaders Larne, again on penalties.

Baxter’s side defeated Cliftonville 4-1 in the league on Saturday but trailed 10 minutes at Seaview to go through thanks to Ryan Curran’s early goal.

But Adam Leckie, who helped Baxter achieve so much success during his trophy-laden spell at the Crusaders, scored the crucial equaliser.

Curran and Liam McStravick both missed penalties, allowing Aidan Steele to get the party started.

“There’s no such thing as a bad medal, it’s a great night for them,” former Glentoran and Crusaders defender Paul Lehmann said on BBC Sport NI.

“They beat Glentoran, Larne and Cliftonville. It’s absolutely deserved.”

After a first title in 33 years, the challenge now for Carrick is to refocus and consolidate their position in the top flight.

They sit in 11th place, just one point away from automatic safety, but the pack above is tight and a string of results either way could see a team move up or down the table.

“They have a cabinet title, can they now move on to bigger and better things by moving up the league table and getting themselves out of trouble?” Lehman added.