Saints and Sinners
The hotel that Saint Patrick's Athletic chose for their stay in Berlin was top notch and indicative of their thoroughly professional approach to the UEFA Cup first round tie with Hertha Berlin. If I told you mine was the biggest hotel room I've ever stayed in you might get some idea of where we're at.
As I checked in the day before the big game at the Olympic Stadium I couldn't believe my luck; the views, the separate lounge area, the massive marble bathroom. Minutes after laying down my suitcase a member of the hotel staff arrived at my door and began to put alcohol back into the minibar. What had they heard about me I wondered?
'Do you know Felix Magath?' asked the minibar man.
Do you mean the former German international, winner of the European Championships, twice World Cup runner-up, manager of Hamburg and Bayern Munich among others?
Eh, yes I had heard of him alright.
'He stayed in THIS room, last night,' declared the minibar man.
Suddenly I kept getting images of the swarthy, squat midfielder working out his team formations on MY bed. It's not always a great idea to know who's been there before you.
Clearly Felix doesn't take a drink, or indeed allow his current charges Wolfsburg to imbibe, especially before a big game. Turns out Wolfsburg played Hertha Berlin at the weekend and came away from the Olympic Stadium with a creditable 2-2 draw. 
Would this be an omen for St Pat's who could have done with a similar result against the home side?
Sadly it was not to be, but you cannot say that it was for lack of preparation. Not only was the hotel first class but every other aspect of the Saints' preparation was meticulously professional.
Travel arrangements, training facilities, food, knowledge of the opposition's set plays, media relations, every little detail was taken care of. Johnny McDonnell and his staff can be as proud as the players for their efforts.
Access to the meeting room where the players studied DVDs of Hertha's most recent matches gave an interesting insight into what it's like for professional footballers at the very highest level these days, and that's the level that Pat's aspire to.
Without question Hertha now have control of this tie and it's theirs to lose at the RDS in a fortnight's time. The difference between the two teams was probably the bench strength, because while Hertha could make a couple of changes to help swing the game, Pat's just couldn't do that.
In the last few weeks, Hertha have signed Andriy Voronin on loan from Liverpool and, although he didn't quite cut it at Anfield, the Ukrainian will have a central role to play for the Berlin side in the second leg and indeed the season ahead. Millions of euro separate the likes of Hertha Berlin from St Patrick's Athletic and, ultimately, that's always likely to prove decisive.
Two second half goals helped the nervy Berliners to victory at the Olympic Stadium but a scoreless first half looked good for the Inchicore outfit.
However, substitute Maximilian Nicu made his mark within four minutes of his half-time introduction and Cicero doubled the lead to leave Saints with a mountain to climb in two weeks' time.
Hertha were unable to create any real fluency before the break but Barry Ryan had to be at his brilliant best to save from Marko Pantelic after 13 minutes.
As tension mounted in the home side, Hertha coach Lucien Favre opted to make two changes at half-time.
And the alterations made an immediate impact, with Nicu having two shots saved by Ryan before his 49th-minute opener.
Nicu's initial effort was inadvertently blocked by Pantelic, but when Ryan could only punch the ball to the edge of the area seconds later, Nicu cleverly controlled on his chest before sidefooting a left-foot volley across the Saints goalkeeper and inside the far post.
Pat's enjoyed their best spell of the game midway through the second half, with good interplay between Mark Quigley and Gary O'Neill resulting in the ball going agonisingly across goal and out of the reach of Gary Dempsey.
Quigley spurned a subsequent chance when brief hesitation saw his far-post chance blocked away, while Pat's had loud appeals for a penalty when Ryan Guy went down under the attentions of Kaka inside the area.
Keith Fahey was excellent on his return to the Saints side for the first time in a fortnight, with all Pat's' best moments directed through him in midfield. He remains their talisman and any hopes of retrieving the tie must revolve around him.
But just when Pat's were thinking of an away goal, they were hit with a sucker second at the other end. Voronin led the counter attack with a surging run towards the penalty area, and when a goal-bound effort was blocked, Cicero was first to react to poke the ball beyond Ryan.
Afterwards the players were clearly disappointed and their away goals in their previous European matches this season have been crucial to their success thus far.
Of the 80 teams left in the competition Pat's are the lowest ranked but they didn't look it by their performance in the Olympic Stadium.
And they have scored twice at home in Europe this season, although as coaches are wont to say now, it's a big ask. However, a partisan crowd for the second leg at the RDS in Dublin in two weeks' time would be a great help.
Every League of Ireland fan, every self-respecting Irish football fan should make the effort to support the Saints. Pat's' hopes of becoming the first Irish side to reach the group stages of a UEFA competition ain't over yet.
Tony O'Donoghue is Group Football Correspondent for RTÉ.
