Shamrock Rovers looking to make new memories on Champions League return

UP FOR BATTLE: Shamrock Rovers players Lee Grace, left, and Aaron Greene at Dublin Airport prior to their flight to Bratislava for the Champions League tie against Slovan Bratislava. Picture: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

Nine years after their last appearance in the Champions League, Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley has stressed the need to avoid dream scenarios.

Rovers fans were in dreamland when competing against the likes of Tottenham and Rubin Kazan in the Europa League a decade ago.

Clashes with Juventus and AC Milan were secured either side of that journey into the group stages, a first for an Irish team.

Slovan Bratislava know all about the riches and status gained from European runs, enjoying three group stage campaigns since Rovers broke new ground.

According to their chief executive Ivan Kmotrik, the lack of government support to offset the €2m losses caused by the pandemic places an even greater importance on Slovan achieving success in this season’s tilt.

That golden path was magnified last month when the victor from this two-legged tie was granted a bye into the third round.

There they will gross another €600,000 on top of the guaranteed €810,000 and face a Young Boys team for a spot in the play-off.

That’s all hypothetical for Bradley. Slovan were ninth highest of the 32 seeded teams, are back-to-back double holders, and possess a quality squad gilded by two members of Slovakia’s Euro finals panel.

One of the duo, Vladimir Weiss, is the son of the new manager of the same name.

He’ll be familiar to Irish fans as boss of a Georgia side that held Mick McCarthy’s team to a scoreless draw in 2019. His first recruits were two Georgians, Guram Kashia and Jaba Kankava.

“It doesn’t matter where you look or what the possibilities are,” reasoned Bradley.

“When you’re playing against this level of opposition, like AC Milan last year and like Limassol the previous season, every second counts.

“If you switch off for a second, nine times out of 10, you get punished. That’s not always the case domestically; sometimes you get away with it.”

One element that has changed is the game-management over the tie. For the first time since 1965, away goals won’t count double in the event of a draw. Bradley isn’t a fan of the new policy.

He said: “It made away teams be more aggressive to get that important away goal. It will definitely change how teams go away from home in Europe and I’m not in favour of it.”

Rovers arrived in Bratislava last night but didn’t spend the flight indulging nostalgia.

“Getting to the group stage in 2011 was a fantastic achievement but it’s in the past,” said Bradley, part of the Rovers league-winning team.

“That has nothing to do with this group of players and staff. Yeah, that side attacked with no fear, as we’ll look to do in this tie, but we won’t look over clips of the past.”

Time to create a few of their own, so.

Three previous big nights for Shamrock Rovers in Europe

23 November 1966

European Cup Winners’ Cup: Bayern Munich 3 Shamrock Rovers 2 (Bayern win 4-3 on aggregate)

After beating Spora Luxembourg 8-2 on aggregate in the first round, Rovers drew 1-1 at home to Bayern Munich in the first leg of the next at Dalymount Park in front of 22,000 fans.

Rovers were on course to cause an upset, leading at Gruenwalder Stadium on away goals, until Franz Beckenbauer’s free-kick led to Gerd Müller grabbing the winner for a Bayern side that went on to lift the trophy.

25 August 2011

Europa League play-off: Partizan Belgrade 1 Shamrock Rovers 2 AET (Rovers win 2-1 on aggregate)

Rovers’ consolation prize for dropping out of the Champions League at the second hurdle was a shot at reaching the knockout stages of the sister competition. It was all to play for after a 1-1 draw in Tallaght; Pat O’Sullivan’s 58th-minute dipping volley cancelling out a first opener from the Serbs. Stephen O’Donnell was coolness personified in converting an extra-time penalty which guaranteed the Hoops €1m in prize-money.

25 July 2013

Champions League: FK Ekranas 2 Shamrock Rovers 1 (Ekranas win 2-1 on aggregate)

Following Michael O’Neill’s walkout, successor Stephen Kenny couldn’t replicate the northerner’s success in Europe, bowing out of premier competition without the comfort of a backdoor into the Europa League. Rovers couldn’t penetrate an average Lithuanian side at Tallaght and only had a late consolation of Gary McCabe’s penalty to show on away soil. It was the beginning of the end for Kenny, who was sacked two months later.