Draws for the first qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League and Conference League have been made, with Shelbourne drawn against Northern Irish side Linfield FC and St. Pats facing FC Hegelmann of Lithuania.
SHELBOURNE (vs Linfield FC)
The shortest distance between two Champions League qualifiers that face each other, as Shelbourne and Northern Irish outfit Linfield will do battle for a place in the second round.
The Belfast side won the NIFL Premiership by a landslide, with nearest competitors Larne finishing 22 points behind them.
Linfield is the most successful club in Northern Irish football, winning a record nine league titles in its current format, and topping the table 57 times throughout their 125 year stay in the topflight.
Although they fell at the first hurdle last year in attempting to qualify for European competition. Losing 4-3 on aggregate to Stjarnan of Iceland in Conference League qualifying, despite winning the second leg 3-2, as Stjarnan’s tie-winning goal came in the 88th minute.
In that second leg, midfielder Chris Shields was sent off for the Blues late on and will carry the suspension into this campaign. For Shelbourne, Sean Gannon is also bringing a suspension over from Europa Conference League qualifying last season, for the straight red card he received in the away leg against St. Joseph’s of Gibraltar. He will return for the Reds in the second leg.
Their league rivals Larne qualified for the final tournament, but did not have an enjoyable experience on the pitch, finishing 34th out of 36 teams and picking up just three points on the final matchday with a surprise 1-0 home win over Belgian giant Gent.
They also faced Shamrock Rovers in that campaign, being battered 4-1 by Stephen Bradley’s Hoops in game number two.
Linfield will hope that they can progress past Shelbourne to give themselves a good chance at making it to the League Phase of a European competition this season.
While Shels have not been impressing to the heights they had been last season when they claimed the Premier Division crown, the Drumcondra based side are not to be counted out.
The evening before the draw was made the Reds made it out of Richmond Park with all three points following Ali Coote’s first half strike. A jubilant Damien Duff knelt down in the direction of the away support and bowed to the travelling fans.
It is without question that he will want a fierce atmosphere when Linfield make the trip to Tolka Park to play the first leg of this tie.
The sides have faced off previously, but not since 2006, when Linfield defeated Shelbourne 4-0 on aggregate in that year’s edition of the now long forgotten Setanta Cup.
ST. PATRICK’S ATHLETIC (vs FC Hegelmann)
FC Hegelmann of Lithuania will take a trip to Inchicore to face St. Patrick’s Athletic in the first leg, before hosting the Saints in Kaunas.
Hegelmann finished second in last years A Lyga, losing out to Champions League qualifying regulars Zalgiris by twelve points. Though in the current season, Zalgiris find themselves down in eighth and thirteen points adrift from the top spot.
Hegelmann are second on goal difference but tied with league leaders Kauno Zalgiris on points.
The team based in the Kaunas region of Lithuania were absent from European qualifiers last season, and in 2023, they were thumped 5-0 on aggregate by Shkupi of North Macedonia. They faced Shamrock Rovers in Europa League qualifying in 2022 and were defeated 5-2 over two legs.
Their history is a short one, only being founded in January 2009 by a German-owned freight forwarding and logistics company of the same name. In 2018 they won the third tier of Lithuanian football to propel them to the I Lyga for the first time.
Finishing second in only their second season at that level, they were promoted to the topflight, where they have enjoyed a steady journey, not finishing below fifth since their arrival..
Their opponents St. Patrick’s Athletic are no strangers to European competition, regularly qualifying for the Conference League via their two cup wins and finishing in the top four of the league on a consistent basis.
Spearheaded by Stephen Kenny who led Dundalk to the group stages of the Europa League in 2016/2017, unheard of at the time for a League of Ireland club, and a testament to Kenny’s legacy at the Lilywhites.
Hegelmann will produce a new puzzle for Kenny to solve as they are so new and unknown in comparison to the European teams he has faced in the past, but one that the former Republic of Ireland boss will embrace.
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