The champions of Ireland and Northern Ireland meeting in league phase competition is the type of quirky pairing that the people behind the Europa Conference League had in mind when they introduced a competition that would offer more opportunities for league winners.
Over the years, there have been various meetings in early qualifying rounds, some more infamous than others. Linfield’s defeat to Dundalk in 1979 is remembered for crowd trouble in the Oriel Park first leg that brought the decider to Holland. The Belfast giants did prevail against Jim McLaughlin’s Shamrock Rovers side five years later. Glentoran (Waterford 1970 and Shelbourne 2005) twice failed to overcome the champions from south of the border.
Linfield’s UEFA Cup loss to Cork City in 2016 is the most recent encounter, with the absence of cross-border competitions from the current schedule and the new UEFA that has removed the round-robin home and away angles really ticking all the boxes to make this a genuine ‘one-off’ affair.
Larne are a new name to the history books in more ways than one, a rags-to-riches tale that has been elevated by their feat in becoming the first Irish League side to extend a European campaign into the proper stuff. The draw has created a slightly unusual dynamic around this encounter for Rovers.
In their Europa League runs in 2011 and 2022, the Hoops were effectively cast as David v Goliath in every game. A December trip to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea is the reward that players daydream about when they cross the qualifying round hurdle.
But Larne didn’t get the same luck in the glamour stakes. They’ve already lost in Molde and their remaining away days will be in Slovenia and a meeting with Dinamo Minsk on neutral territory.
Swiss side St Gallen and Belgian powerhouses Gent are due in Belfast before the year is out, stronger sides than Rovers but not quite headline-grabbers.
In a strange way, Rovers is their marquee game, with their manager Tiernan Lynch calling for the Irish League community to rally around them for a meeting where there’s league pride at stake.
Rovers boss Stephen Bradley has dismissed the idea the result will serve as a barometer of where the leagues stand.
“It’s impossible to judge on the basis of one game,” said Bradley, who insisted the thrilling LOI title race and Sunday’s trip to Dundalk will not distract from his team’s focus.
With a point on the board from an opening draw with APOEL Nicosia, he feels six more could put the Hoops into January’s play-off round and with the trip to Larne followed by the visit of TNS (November 7), Rovers fans see opportunity.
Bradley, a regular attendee of Irish League games, has warned against complacency: “If we think we can look past Larne we’ll be leaving here with our tail between our legs.”
Larne v Shamrock Rovers, Live, Premier Sports 1/TNT Sports 4, 5.45