St Pat’s Euro odyssey continues

RICHMOND PARK is full of brotherly love these days.

It was David McMillan who got the crucial away goal in Kazakhstan and last night in the far more familiar surroundings of Inchicore, it was Evan McMillan who set St Patrick’s Athletic on the way to another memorable European victory.

A second goal, from Derek Doyle, sealed the deal for the Saints who now go through to the third qualifying round of the Europa League and a meeting with Karpaty Lviv of the Ukraine.

The rapture of the home support at the end was well deserved for, over the two legs, this was nothing short of an heroic achievement by Pete Mahon and his men.

That their reward is another long-haul trip might appear something of a mixed blessing — especially since, absurdly, they are first obliged to play a league game in Sligo on Saturday — but this gutsy Pat’s team is one that seems to rise to every new challenge.

Airtricity League player of the month Danny North was back to lead the line as they went in search of the goal they needed that, so long as they kept a clean sheet, would be enough to put them through.

But it was the visitors who came close to grabbing their own away goal just six minutes in when Sergei Khhizhnichenko got across his marker to get a boot on the end of Kairat Utabayev’s fine cross and only Gary Rogers’ quick reaction save with his feet kept the Pats goal intact.

All-day rain in Dublin had made the Richmond Park surface super slick, with players on both sides occasionally struggling to keep their feet. But, 15 minutes in, the problem for Karagandy was that their big defence was simply left flat-footed when Evan McMillan squeezed through the bodies to head home a Stephen Bradley corner and give Pats the goal they craved.

Already, the Saints had one foot in the next round – but there was still a long way to go.

An opportunistic header by man mountain Dzidic brushed the top of the Pat’s crossbar on the half-hour mark but the home side, showing good movement and some nice touches upfront, were also giving their opponents plenty to think about.

When Daryl Kavanagh expertly turned his man and, a split-second after a despairing challenge, went to ground, players and supporters alike screamed for a penalty but Belgian referee Sebastien Delferiere was unmoved.

And, sneaking in at the far post, McMillan almost grabbed his second of the night from another superbly-flighted Bradley ball, but this time the effort ended up in the side-netting.

In the dying moments of the first half, there was another big shout for a Pat’s penalty as Danny North claimed handball when his shot was blocked in the box.

The boos at the break were all for the referee as Pat’s went in with qualification for the next round still in their own hands. Inevitably, there was a greater urgency about Karagandy after the restart as well as an unfortunate tendency on Pats part to drop too deep with everyone bar Danny North getting behind the ball.

At times, cheaply surrendered possession did little to help Pats’ cause and, just past the hour mark, it needed a combination of Rogers and McMillan to clear their lines when Maksut Bayshanov had a shot on target.

But in the 67th minute came the goal that lifted all the nervous tension. Full-back Derek Pender made good progress up the right flank and when his cross came winging in at the far post, the onrushing Derek Doyle did brilliantly to withstand the attentions of his marker and direct a stretching volley to the corner of the net.

Now, Karagandy needed a goal just to keep the tie alive but it was Pats who threatened again when only a fingertip save by Aleksandr Mokin denied man-of-the-match Bradley’s free-kick with 10 minutes remaining.

And though Shakter threw a succession of high balls into the box, Evan McMillan and Brian Shorthall were so commanding in the air that, remarkably, Gary Rogers hardly had a save for most of the second-half.

One down side for Pat’s though is that Stephen Bradley and Daryl Kavanagh will be suspended for the return leg.

ST PATRICK’S ATHLETIC: Rogers, Pender, E McMillan, Shorthall, Bermingham, McFaul, Bradley, Daly (Mulcahy 82), Doyle (Murphy 85), Kavanagh, North (D. McMillan 77)

SHAKHTER KARAGANDY: Mokin, Kirov, Vicius, Vasiljevic, Utabayev (Bormantaev 79), Kukeyev, Bayzhanov, Petronijevic Dosmanbetov 70), Dzidic, Konysbayev, Khiznichenko

Referee: Sebastien Delferiere (Belgium) .