Uefa Conference League 2nd qualifying round, 2nd leg: Shamrock Rovers 0 St Joseph’s (Gibraltar) 0 (Rovers win 4-0 on agg)
With the hard yards emphatically done in last week’s 4-0 win in Gibraltar, Shamrock Rovers never needed to come close to adding to that record away win in Europe here to rubber-stamp their passage through to the third round of the Conference League qualifiers.
Stephen Bradley’s side now meet Kosovans FC Ballkani, who beat Floriana of Malta 5-3 on aggregate, with the winners advancing to the play-offs for the League Phase.
Irish League side Larne having stunned fellow Kosovans Prishtina in a dramatic penalty shoot-out, it means Rovers travel to Kosovo next Thursday for their first leg (instead of Tuesday) meaning Sunday’s league game at home to Derry City goes ahead as rescheduled.
With a European debut for 20-year-old defensive midfielder Cian Barrett one of six changes from Gibraltar, Rovers took seven minutes to settle into the game, creating a gilt-edged chance to have gone ahead on the night.
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Skipper Roberto Lopes and Gary O’Neill worked the ball down the right for the run of Rory Gaffney. The veteran striker skilfully turned inside Geovanni Barba to force a parry save at his left-hand post from Bradley Banda. Danny Grant knows he should have done far better than blaze the rebound high over the crossbar.
But that was as good as it got by way of further troubling the St Joseph’s goal in the first half as the visitors, playing with no little confidence, spurned a big chance of their own to take the lead on 31 minutes.
Barba was allowed to surge forward from the back to play a sublime through ball for the clever run of Javi Forjan. Ed McGinty’s positioning was spot on as he saved well with his legs.
There was another let off for a sluggish Rovers minutes before the break, Angel Martinez volleying wide after Jayce Olivero’s deep cross dropped for him on the edge of the area.
With more urgency to their game on the resumption, and Lee Grace and John McGovern into the fray at either end of the pitch replacing Lopes and Gaffney, Rovers moved the ball with more intent, a terrific save preventing a goal eight minutes in.
Teenager Michael Noonan was the unintentional architect with his shot getting a flick off the head of McGovern to bring a superb reaction stop from Banda.
While owning the ball for much of the remainder of the game, further clearcut chances were scarce.
There was a late shout for a penalty not entertained by the Swedish referee when Noonan appeared to be tripped by substitute Javi Paul, but, try as they might, Rovers’ winner on the night never materialised.
Shamrock Rovers: McGinty; O’Neill, Lopes (Grace, h-t), C. O’Sullivan; Grant, Barrett, McEneff (Watts, 63), Honohan (Mandroiu, 63); Byrne (Kavanagh, 63); Noonan, Gaffney (McGovern, h-t).
St Joseph’s: Banda; Volz, Cardozo (Javi Paul, 79), Barba, Olivero; Pena (Rodriguez, 60), Sanchez, Juanma; Gibson (Armental, h-t), Forjan (Santos, 65), Martinez.
Referee: Granit Maqedonci (Sweden).
Attendance: 5,128.
