UEFA Conference League second qualifying round second legs
Thursday, 31 July
Nomme Kalju v St Patrick's Athletic, A. Le Coq Arena, 5.45pm
Shamrock Rovers v St Joseph's, Tallaght Stadium, 8pm
WEATHER
For Shamrock Rovers at Tallaght Stadium, it will be a mostly dry evening on Thursday with lots of sunshine. Highest temperatures between 17 to 21 degrees in moderate westerly winds.
Over in Estonia, it will be humid with temperatures of up to 27 degrees, with a mixture of cloudy and sunny spells, punctuated by heavy rainfall.
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Deja vu for Pat's?
It's not that long ago that St Patrick's Athletic earned a narrow home win at Richmond Park despite having chances to secure a more comprehensive advantage before flying out to the Baltics for a second leg.
That was earlier this month against Lithuanian outfit Hegelmann when a late Aidan Keena penalty was eventually built on with a 2-0 win on the road.
Similarly, last week, Stephen Kenny's side edged past Estonian side Nomme Kalju thanks to a late, late winner by the evergreen Chris Forrester in Inchicore. But given that Pat's were clearly levels above Kalju in general play and the Estonians had two players sent off in the second half, the fact that they are only taking a 1-0 advantage to the A. Le Coq Arena in Tallinn is frustrating.
Kenny was somewhat sanguine about the position his side are in going into the second leg but sounded an optimistic tone about the Saints' chances of finishing the job and progressing to an extremely daunting Conference League third qualifying round tie against either Shakhtar Donetsk or Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Besitkas.
"We are disappointed that we couldn't get a second because a second would have a put is in a really strong position," he said after the first leg.
"We had a lot of chances to get a second but we couldn't take them. We can't dwell on that even though we are a little frustrated but we'll take the 1-0 victory overall as a good result."
Midfielder Romal Palmer is a long-term absentee but losing Zach Elbouzedi to a dislocated shoulder sustained after a foul in the first leg is a blow for Pat's, not just for Thursday's game, with the potential that he faces several weeks on the sidelines.
Meanwhile, Pat's have signed Northern Ireland under-21 international Darren Robinson on loan from Derby County this week, with Kenny saying that: "With the injuries to Romal Palmer and Zach Elbouzedi, the timing of Darren's arrival is opportune. We feel he has the overall quality that can help us for the remainder of the season on loan from Derby."
Shamrock Rovers sitting pretty as St Joseph's come to Tallaght
Unlike St Pat's, Shamrock Rovers are sitting on a very comfy cushion against St Joseph's of Gibraltar after winning the away leg 4-0 last week.
Rory Gaffney, Daniel Mandroiu, John McGovern and Jack Byrne delivered the goals, with McGovern's particularly notable as the newly-arrived former Dungannon Swifts and Down GAA man scoring his first goal for the club in his third cameo appearance for the club.
With the age profile of the strikers at the club skewing from stalwarts in their mid-30s like Gaffney and Aaron Greene to precocious Michael Noonan who turns 17 on the day of the second leg, McGovern's age profile at 22 is a boost for manager Stephen Bradley, according to former Rovers midfielder Richie Towell.
"Now they have someone like McGovern coming in who's a perfect age, in super shape," Towell told this week's RTÉ Soccer Podcast.
"It looks like he's an absolute match made in heaven for the way Shamrock Rovers play. The Rovers fans will love him already and if he continues to score goals, and especially in Europe, not just the fans but his manager Stephen Bradley will love him as well."
Whether McGovern starts or not tonight, Bradley will be able to make changes for the second leg given the four-goal advantage Rovers have over St Joseph's and with an important SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division fixture to come on Sunday evening at Tallaght Stadium against third-placed Derry City as the Hoops look to extend their significant lead at the summit over Bohemians and the Candystripes.
But the manager is also mindful of winning the second leg given the importance of UEFA co-efficient points for the club and League of Ireland.
And when it comes to Europe, and as a seeded team, the focus will be on sealing the deal against St Joseph's and advancing to a third qualifying round tie where either Ballkani (Kosovo) or Floriana (Malta) await, with the former leading 4-2 after their first leg.
