UEFA Conference League second qualifying round first legs
Thursday, 24 July
St Joseph's v Shamrock Rovers, Europa Sports Park, 5pm
St Patrick's Athletic v Nomme JK Kalju, Richmond Park, 7.45pm
WEATHER
For St Pat's in Dublin, Thursday will be dry with sunny spells that will turn hazy at times. Cloud building from the west through the evening. Highest temperatures of 18 to 21 degrees with light westerly winds.
In Gibraltar, it will be around 29-30 degrees at kick-off, which will be 6pm local time, but showery weather is expected late on Thursday.
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A Baltic summer for the Saints
St Patrick's Athletic's reward for getting past Lithuanian side FC Hegelmann 3-0 on aggregate in the first qualifying round of the Conference League is a tie against another Baltic team, with Estonian outfit Nomme Kalju standing between Stephen Kenny's side and a daunting glamour tie against the loser of Besiktas and Shakhtar Donetsk's Europa League match-up.
This time last year, St Pat's journey went as far as the play-off round but given what lies ahead this summer, it's hard to see them getting beyond the third round - if they get that far of course.
They won't be looking further ahead than the challenge posed by Kalju in this second round over the next fortnight, which would still be a boost to the club's coffers. The prize money for elimination at the third round stage is €550K, along with earnings for progressing through earlier rounds.
Kalju advanced to the second round after completing a 2-1 aggregate victory over Albania's Partizani last week in what is their first appearance in Europe since the 2020-21 season, having finished a distant second in the 2024 league. They also won their domestic cup in May.
The Estonian side are currently fourth in this season's league after beating Tallinna Kalev 6-2 at the weekend which leaves them nine points off the top.
Theirs is a young squad with just three players aged over 25, including attacking midfielder Kristjan Kask who is their top scorer with seven goals this season.
St Pat's, meanwhile, are languishing down in sixth in the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division with a lack of goals having been an issue since the summer started.
However, two from open play in the second leg at Hegelmann last Thursday - they also netted eight in the FAI Cup against UCC on Sunday - will have been a confidence booster with Mason Melia scoring one and setting up the other for Kian Leavy.
But making the most of the first leg at home will be vital, according to former St Pat's midfielder Alan Cawley, who feels Kenny's team should have enough to advance past a club of Kalju's stature.
"The home thing is a big advantage and you have to come out of the traps quickly and I think St Pat's, to be fair in the last couple of weeks, have picked up," he told this week's RTÉ Soccer Podcast, adding that Kenny's pedigree in Europe will be a factor.
"Estonia, I think they are 43rd in the UEFA rankings, we're 32 I think it is - and it's not always based on that - but you look at where they're at, fourth in the domestic league. I know they won 6-2 at the weekend but they don't score a lot of goals.
"In 21 games, they've only scored 43 goals, so I would fancy Pat's, once they take the game to them, which we know that's what Stephen Kenny does anyway. He likes to be on the front foot, he likes to go after teams, and I think that has to be the mantra that they go for, especially at home on Thursday night."
Kenny is wary of Kalju however, telling RTÉ soccer correspondent Tony O'Donoghue that it's as tough a pairing as they could have got.
"They work on 3-4-2-1 model, very energetic, very fit and have a good Brazilian attacking player," he said in reference to winger Guilherme Smith, who has five goals from 19 league games.
"We'll have to be at our best to put in a good performance. They are full-time professionals so this will be a tough game for us, with the winners getting either Besiktas or Shakhtar Donetsk. It is the toughest draw we could have got but it's still a big incentive to get through."
But other than Romal Palmer and Sean Hoare, the manager has a fully fit squad to choose from.
Rovers on the Rock for launchpad towards League Phase aim
Shamrock Rovers know what it's like to get to the 'League Phase' of this competition, having done so last season.
However, the route was different. On that occasion, they qualified for Europe as LOI title holders and began the journey via the Champions League, reaching the second qualifying round.
While they subsequently dropped into the Europa League following a 6-2 aggregate loss to Sparta Prague, an aggregate win for Stephen Bradley's team over Slovenia's Celje ultimately guaranteed them the minimum of a very lucrative qualification to the Conference League, which led to memorable nights against the likes of Chelsea, Rapid Vienna and APOEL in the latter part of 2024.
But by not winning the domestic league title last year, getting through two rounds of European ties won't be enough this time to get to a 'League Phase' in the third tier competition.
This time, starting in the Conference League second round, it would require aggregate wins across three rounds to qualify for the competition proper.
But they will be heavily favoured to get past Gibraltar's St Joseph's to reach a third round tie against the winner of Ballkani (Kosovo) v Floriana (Malta).
Having said that, St Joseph's were only narrowly beaten by Shelbourne in last season's first qualifying round, with the Dublin side prevailing 3-2 over the two legs.
This month, Gibraltar's oldest existing club did get past the first round, beating Belfast outfit Cliftonville 5-4 on aggregate after extra-time.
But while it's not an exact science in comparing one league to another, Rovers did hammer then reigning NIFL champions Larne 4-1 at Windsor Park in their Conference League 'League Phase' meeting. Larne finished second in the regular part of the Northern Irish season in 2024-25, whereas Cliftonville were seventh.
While they will be favourites, the main challenges the Hoops will have to contend with will be the heat but also the fact that the Europa Sports Park pitch that St Joseph's will be hosting them on this Thursday has an artificial surface.
However, Bradley, who says he has a full deck to pick from within his squad, does not appear overly perturbed by either of those potential issues.
"We've faced every different type of scenario in Europe throughout the years, from the really good to the really bad and you can't control them so there's no point worrying about them," the manager told Shamrock Rovers TV.
"Whatever tomorrow throws up, we'll be ready."
Meanwhile, Shamrock Rovers have announced the loan signing of Connor Malley (above) from Sligo Rovers until the end of the season.
The 25-year-old midfielder, from Tyne and Wear, has previously had spells with Dundalk and Rochdale.
