talkFORUM

Club fitba is back.

You can almost predict 6 of the 8 QF teams in the Champions League these days ; so I've always found the qualifiers and first rounds the most interesting. Especially if a wee team can get in to the group stages e.g Linfield were 90 seconds away from group stage European football last year ; a Faroese side as well were very close. Shamrock Rovers and Dundalk (I think) have played group stage football too in the last 10-12 years.

With the luck of the draw and the Conference League - hopefully we'll see a diddy make the group stages.

Champions League started on Tuesday : Breiðablík beat Shamrock Rovers 1-0 in Dublin. HJK Helsinki beat Larne 1-0 in Finland. So both ties still all to play.

We've got the first rounds of the European club competitions going on. Tonight, there's a couple of Northern Irish, Irish and Welsh teams in action.

Bruno's Magpies of Gibraltar v Dundalk - Dundalk surely will get through that.
HB Torshavn v Derry City - tight game. Faroese are ever improving, wouldn't be surprised if HB won the tie, but Derry must be favourites.
Linfield v Vllaznia (Albania) - seems quite a tough tie for Linfield.
KA (Iceland) v Connah's Quay - KA won the cup (I think) and finished third. Tough ask for CQ.
KF Shkendija (Albania) v Haverfordwest - a new name in Europe for me, but not expecting much.

I think Scottish teams enter the tournament in the next round (and no doubt exit too)

Return legs played next week 18/19/20th of July.

You missed out the mighty Glens who are away to the colossus of Gzira Utd of Malta.
And Crusaders who are also away to Haka from Finland.

The Glens have the far easier task but will probably and predictably fuck it up.
While the Hatchetmen face a difficult match but might do well knowing those jammy gits.

The Welch Real Madrid, TNS humped 3-1 by Häcken of Sweden.

Glens got a 2-2 draw away. Which is a little disappointing but I can live with that. Crusaders got the same result away against better opposition.

Forgot about Glentoran, but decent results for all the NI teams ; not great for the Irish sides ; and the Welsh lads going down to wee losses.

I think a 0-0 at home is always a decent result. Get that first goal away and the other side is needing two.

Bruno's Magpies 0 - 0 Dundalk
HB Torshavn 0 -0 Derry
KA 2 - 0 Connah's Quay
Shendija 1 - 0 Haverfordwest
Linfield 3 - 1 Vllaznia
Haka 2- 2 Crusaders
Gzira 2 - 2 Glentoran

kevin04 wrote: ↑Fri Jul 14, 2023 6:55 pm Forgot about Glentoran, but decent results for all the NI teams ; not great for the Irish sides ; and the Welsh lads going down to wee losses.

I think a 0-0 at home is always a decent result. Get that first goal away and the other side is needing two.

Bruno's Magpies 0 - 0 Dundalk
HB Torshavn 0 -0 Derry
KA 2 - 0 Connah's Quay
Shendija 1 - 0 Haverfordwest
Linfield 3 - 1 Vllaznia
Haka 2- 2 Crusaders
Gzira 2 - 2 Glentoran

Do away goals count in the qualifiers?

Carlos J wrote: ↑Sat Jul 15, 2023 11:58 am

kevin04 wrote: ↑Fri Jul 14, 2023 6:55 pm Forgot about Glentoran, but decent results for all the NI teams ; not great for the Irish sides ; and the Welsh lads going down to wee losses.

I think a 0-0 at home is always a decent result. Get that first goal away and the other side is needing two.

Bruno's Magpies 0 - 0 Dundalk
HB Torshavn 0 -0 Derry
KA 2 - 0 Connah's Quay
Shendija 1 - 0 Haverfordwest
Linfield 3 - 1 Vllaznia
Haka 2- 2 Crusaders
Gzira 2 - 2 Glentoran

Do away goals count in the qualifiers?

Sadly no.

https://www.sportingnews.com/uk/footbal ... belnlmm1sp

Carlos J wrote: ↑Sat Jul 15, 2023 11:58 am

kevin04 wrote: ↑Fri Jul 14, 2023 6:55 pm Forgot about Glentoran, but decent results for all the NI teams ; not great for the Irish sides ; and the Welsh lads going down to wee losses.

I think a 0-0 at home is always a decent result. Get that first goal away and the other side is needing two.

Bruno's Magpies 0 - 0 Dundalk
HB Torshavn 0 -0 Derry
KA 2 - 0 Connah's Quay
Shendija 1 - 0 Haverfordwest
Linfield 3 - 1 Vllaznia
Haka 2- 2 Crusaders
Gzira 2 - 2 Glentoran

Do away goals count in the qualifiers?

I thought away goals in all European club competitions had been scrapped a few seasons ago.

2 seasons ago.

kancutlawns wrote: ↑Sat Jul 15, 2023 5:19 pm

Carlos J wrote: ↑Sat Jul 15, 2023 11:58 am

kevin04 wrote: ↑Fri Jul 14, 2023 6:55 pm Forgot about Glentoran, but decent results for all the NI teams ; not great for the Irish sides ; and the Welsh lads going down to wee losses.

I think a 0-0 at home is always a decent result. Get that first goal away and the other side is needing two.

Bruno's Magpies 0 - 0 Dundalk
HB Torshavn 0 -0 Derry
KA 2 - 0 Connah's Quay
Shendija 1 - 0 Haverfordwest
Linfield 3 - 1 Vllaznia
Haka 2- 2 Crusaders
Gzira 2 - 2 Glentoran

Do away goals count in the qualifiers?

I thought away goals in all European club competitions had been scrapped a few seasons ago.

So did I, hence querying Kevin's post.

Haha, maybe I should learn the rules of the game before starting a European thread, didn't realise the away goals thing was done away with!

Thank you for the away goals confirmation. I'd get a job on talkSPORT circa 2005-2016 with my inaccuracies and blaggary.

Champions League :

TNS lost 3-1 and 2-0 to Hacken (Swedish Champions and a new Swedish name to me) whilst Shamrock Rovers lost 3-1 on agg, 1-0 in Dubin and 2-1 in Iceland to Breiðablik.

Larne lost after ET 3-2 on agg to HJK, but the result of the round and again, I've been singing their praises for years but the FAROE ISLANDS - 45,000 people FFS continue to impress and impress. Klaksvík or lets give them their full title Klaksvíkar Íþróttafélag (Klaksvík Sports Club) beat Hungarian champions (who have recently played in the group stages of the CL and walloped Celtic 3-4 years ago in qualifying) 3-0 on agg. Really impressive.

KÍ meet BK Hacken and Breiðablík play Copenhagen next Tuesday.

Europa Conference League :

I'd say a good night for Northern Irish teams overall (I class Derry as both NI and LOI) Linfield, Crusaders and Derry through. Bas' Glentoran oot on penalties.

Dundalk and Shamrock Rovers (drop down in to the Conference) are in to the next round whilst St Pats lost to Dudelange of Luxembourg.

Haverfordwest record an impressive 1-0 over an Albanian side, so they are marching on and have drawn a Faroese side - so who knows, and if they go out, we've got another wee team through. KA from Akureyri beat Connah's Quay 2-0 twice, so a pretty emphatic 4-0 win on agg.

Next week we see a few new teams come in to the competition including Hibernian.

CONFERENCE LEAGUE FIXTURES all matches next Thursday 27th, apart from Larne (Tuesday)

Balkani (Kosovo) v LARNE

Inter Club d'Escalades (Andorra) v HIBERNIAN
Ferencvaros (Hungary) v SHAMROCK ROVERS
B36 Tórshavn v HAVERFORDWEST
KA (Iceland) v DUNDALK
DERRY v Kups (Finland)
Linfield v Pogon Sczezin (Poland)
CRUSADERS v Rosenborg (Norway)

Quite difficult ties especially for the NI teams, but wouldn't write any of them off - maybe Rosenborg might too big a task ; but Derry and Larne especially have a decent change of advancing.

Icelandic teams have already put out Connahs Quay and Shamrock Rovers ; but imagine Dundalk v KA will be ticht.

Haverfordwest - heard the name briefly, never seen it in a European football context. They played in Europe once before and lost in the first round to yes, an Icelandic team in 2005. So they've now won their first ever European match and now in the second round, they're living the dream. And a favourable draw against a Faroese side (who I'd imagine must be favourites?)

Hibs should beat Inter Club but nothing surprises me about Scottish football and the banter they provide in the early rounds.

Irish raging I've put their teams in CAPS and sorry Linfield I forgot to do it to you, but no one likes you so you don't care!

Useless fucken shitarse cunts.

Basualdo wrote: ↑Fri Jul 21, 2023 10:22 pm Useless fucken shitarse cunts.

Had to look this up. Glen losing 14-13 on pens.

Shit atmos in the ground for our first European game in thirteen years. There are mitigating circumstances though.