Shamrock Rovers are in prime position to secure safe passage to the last 16 of the UEFA Conference League as they welcome Molde to Tallaght Stadium tonight.
Stephen Bradley's side secured a vital 1-0 away win in Norway last week and they will be looking to finish the job in their home stadium.
Michael Noonan made Hooped history last Thursday, the 16-year-old grabbing the winning goal at the Aker Stadion, as Rovers kicked off the 2025 season in style.
However, they were brought back down to earth with a bang on Sunday as Bohemians beat them 1-0 in the league opener at Aviva Stadium.
The clash with their arch Dublin rivals could easily be placed in the unwanted-distraction folder, falling between two important European games, however, there were serious causes for concern, in terms of both the performance on the pitch and the accompanying injury count, which stacked up further during the derby clash.
Already missing key players like Jack Byrne, Rory Gaffney, Trevor Clarke and Darragh Nugent, Rovers lost two more in the first half, with Adam Matthews and Gary O’Neill going off injured.
Danny Mandroiu and Dan Cleary both went off in the second half, although the latter was most likely tactical as Rovers chased the game with the defender already on a yellow card.
Either way, Cleary is ruled out of tonight's game through suspension, while midfield play-maker Dylan Watts is also serving a ban.
The manager's injury update on the eve of the game showed the severity of the task in hand, with the only good news really that O'Neill has been passed fit to play.
"We're down a few alright with the suspensions and injuries," said Bradley. "Danny Mandroiu and Adam Matthews are out but Gary O'Neill should be ok.
"Jack Byrne is probably now about a week away. Trevor Clarke, we’re still waiting. Darragh Nugent is another two to three weeks after his facial injury, when he gets his mask, it’ll be sooner but a bit away yet.
"Rory Gaffney came through the under 20s game well, looked really good and I liked what I saw and he moved really well. He can’t be involved against Molde as the European squad was submitted last year but we’re hoping Rory will be involved against Cork at the weekend."
As for the performance on Sunday, Bradley felt after the game that his side had enough goalmouth chances to, at least, draw the game, and while there were certainly ample opportunities to even take all three points, the overall showing was lacking in both composure and quality.
The Rovers' defence was pressed into uncharacteristic mistakes, most notably in the first half, and they really only managed to put a sustained period of pressure in the Bohs final third during the latter stages of the contest, with their opponents sitting deep looking to see out the game.
If one 16-year-old grabbed the headlines in Molde, another had a perfect opportunity to do likewise at Lansdowne Road, however, substitute Victor Ozhianvuna was unable to turn the ball home in what would have been his first touch of the game.
But the impressive thing about Rovers latest academy graduate is that he did not appear fazed by the miss, nor the occasion, and went on to put in an eye-catching display for the remaining 20-odd minutes.
Hugging the left touchline, the teenager was comfortable in possession, showed quality in his passing game and looked like he wanted the football, which shows why the manager has him involved with the first team.
Similarly, Matt Healy came on during the first half and he brought both energy and intelligence to the Rovers attack, always looking to play the ball forward and between the lines for the attacking unit to run on to.
Aaron Greene was the only available senior outfield player that was not used on Sunday, which suggests that he was being kept back for the European fixture, or perhaps the veteran striker could be looking at a limited role this year with Noonan, Mandroiu and Graham Burke all used ahead of him in Molde.
Looking ahead to tonight’s clash, Rovers still have the capability to put out a similarly strong starting 11 to resume the fixture, knowing that they are just 90 minutes away from prolonging this epic 2024 European run into March 2025 with a place in the last 16.
Last week’s gameplan went perfectly for the travelling Rovers side, who kept the home team quiet early in the game, despite their manager Per-Mathias Hogmo predicting a relentless showing from his side.
Molde were then reduced to ten men following Valdemar Lund’s straight red card for chopping down Noonan, and it allowed Rovers the confidence to go and take control of the game, which they did thanks to the 16-year-old’s instinctive finish in the 57th minute.
Going into tonight’s game, you might expect that Molde will have to play at a higher level, yet there was little sign of that capability in last week’s game.
The Norwegians are still in pre-season mode and while they have had a strong European pedigree throughout the last decade, it will be interesting to see if they have the confidence to take the game to Rovers tonight.
Bradley will send his side out in a similar mindset to how they have conducted themselves throughout this European campaign – full of confidence and belief in both their ability and the tactics.
They also take to the pitch with a one-goal lead, which puts added pressure on Molde to maintain a modicum of conservatism, knowing that another Rovers goal could put the tie beyond doubt.
As for the Irish side's approach, their manager has been happy to give youth its chance in this embryonic stage of the season, however, you would imagine that Bradley is expecting his experienced unit to take control and finish the job tonight.
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