Shamrock Rovers manager Stephen Bradley feels his side are even better-equipped for European competitions this year as he delivered a positive outlook on Jack Byrne ahead of Tuesday night's Champions League opener with Breidablik.
The Hoops qualified for the group stages of the Conference League last year by way of victories over Maltese side Hibernians and Macedonian outfit Shkupi.
The three in-a-row league winners have the best chance of all Irish teams when it comes to reaching the outright competitions due to their champions route, as victory in the first round of the Champions League gives them two more opportunities to qualify in the second and third-tier tournaments.
By the end of their Conference group, Bradley was rotating his team to an extent where weaker selections were being used in Europe in order to prioritse retaining their league crown.
He feels they can challenge on all fronts throughout 2023.
Speaking to RTÉ Sport: "We work so hard to be successful domestically so we can put ourselves in opportunities like we have on Tuesday night. We all want to go and show we're a really good team in Europe. We did OK last year but we want to improve on that and try to be better. It's difficult, we know that, but that is the aim; we want to be better than we were last year.
"Last year there was a mixture of a lot of things that hurt us in the group stages. The availability of players was a big one.
"We had a really small squad to work from in the end. We had to try to balance that with the league. This year I think the squad is in a better place. We have players back from injury now. I think we're better equipped to fight on all fronts."
The short-term outlook is certainly good for the Tallaght side.
Lee Grace, Alan Mannus and Gary O'Neill are back in contention with Mannus possibly set for a return in goals after close to two months out.
Trevor Clarke has another few weeks before a return while Neil Farrugia could feature in the second leg.
But the major boost for Bradley is a change of stance in Byrne’s fitness who could also start the first leg.
The Hoops manager said: "We're hopeful Jack is going to be OK. He just missed Friday night and he has had a few extra days to recover. We're hoping he is going to be OK.
"We need everyone in the squad. We saw that last year and this will be no different. We want to fight on all fronts. We need to be successful and better than we were last year. To do that you need everybody. The squad know that and they will be ready."
A scoreless draw in Drogheda was not the ideal preparation coming into this clash as their lead at the top remained at four points, with Derry City joining St Patrick’s Athletic in a tie for second place.
Nevertheless Bradley was unconcerned by the outcome in the overall picture of their season.
"Drogheda are a difficult game up there. I thought parts of our play were good. Parts weren't so good. But it happens. We've drawn a game, it's fine, we have a point more than we did before the game. We move on and focus on the game on Tuesday night
"It's football. If it was plain sailing and picking up wins every week and winning leagues every year was easy, everyone would be doing it. We know there's bumps in the road. We win games you should lose, you lose games you should win, that's football. That's the way it goes. On Friday when we reflect we take a point and move on.
"We've been the top scorers in this country in the last four years and created the most chances as well. We know we score goals and create chances. We didn't on Friday. But it happens. We trust what we do and we'll be OK
"We trust the group. We know where we are. These players are hungry for more, hungry for success. Let's see where it takes us for the rest of the season."
The Icelandic champions came through the prelimininary qualifying round with ease, with Bradley and his staff present to watch the semi-final.
He has warned of a difficult opponent and wants to see over 7,000 home fans getting behind his side in order to help them on their way.
"They're a very good team. They've lots of rotations, lots of movement and real energy. They've real athleticism in their team. They are a very, very good team but we believe if we're at our best we can win the tie.
"Hopefully we can sell out. Tallaght on a European night is special. Hopefully we can sell out and make it a special occasion and a difficult place for them to come."
Watch Shamrock Rovers v Breidablik on Tuesday night from 7.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player or follow a live blog on RTÉ.ie/Sport and the RTÉ News app
Listen to the RTÉ Soccer podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
