EUROPA LEAGUE SECOND QUALIFYING ROUND, FIRST LEG:AFTER 19 hours of flights to Astana, a city that at first glance strikes the Dubliner as resembling the "Las Vegas of Asia", manager Pete Mahon reckons it will take "a miracle" if the visitors are to get a result in their Europa League game this afternoon.
The logistics of the trip were never going to be easy, but matters weren’t helped yesterday by the failure of the Kazakh embassy to send someone to Heathrow airport with the visas required by the St Patrick’s players and officials prior to arrival in the country’s capital.
From there they will have to spend two-and-a-half hours this morning travelling to Karagandy itself, and with Shakhter officials having apparently declined to arrange the bus on their behalf, there was a certain, understandable, weariness to Mahon as he contemplated the actual game last night.
“We are all shattered, to be honest,” he said. “The flight was through the night but we just weren’t tired enough to sleep. We won’t be able to train here before the game; it is just a case of stretching and having a walk around the place.
“I’ll be honest, if we can pull this one off it will be a miracle.
“It is always good to win away in Europe,” he continued, “but considering what we have been through to get here, this would be extra special.
“There has been a lot of running about trying to get everything organised at short notice, it was a long, long journey, a bit of a grueller to be honest. And then a lot of messing about with the visas.”
Things were beginning to look up a little last night with the arrival of a DVD of today’s opponents which Mahon and John Gill were planning to go through with the players after dinner.
The team hotel, Mahon says, is impressive and the hope was that the players would at least get a good night’s rest before heading off this morning. He was also encouraged by the fact the temperature was closer to 20 degrees than the expected 30.
“It is going to be difficult playing a game after all that travelling,” admitted left back Ian Bermingham, “but we are looking forward to it and hopefully we put in a good performance and bring the tie back here alive and then go for broke.
“When you’ve never seen a team, you are going into the unknown, as they say. We just have to settle into the game, get to grips with them and then play our own game and hopefully get a good result to bring back with us.”
Like the Dubliners, Shakter have slipped back in their domestic title race recently after losing to the league leaders – they now lie fourth, five points off the top. But they appear to be a decent team boasting a number of internationals both from home and abroad.
The foreign contingent includes the likes of Andrey Paryvaev of Belarus, Nikola Vasiljevic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Viorel Frunza from Moldova. The latter was once of Zimbru Chisinau, a name that is bound to strike terror into the hearts of the visitors.
It was former under-21 Kazakh international Ulan Konisbayev who rescued his side in the last round of this competition, however, with two second-half goals that gave them a 2-1 home win and a 3-2 victory overall. Their top scorer this season by quite some margin is another local, 19-year-old Sergei Khizhnichenko, whose 11 goals in 18 league appearances have attracted some overseas interest.
Mahon will give final fitness tests to Brian Shortall and Paul Crowley before naming the side he hopes can deliver some sort of result. Whatever happens, he may enjoy the journey back just a little more knowing the Kazakhs must endure it next week just before the return leg.
Mannus focused on second leg, not rumoured move
ALAN MANNUS is confident Shamrock Rovers can build on Tuesday night’s win over Flora Tallinn and progress to the third qualifying round of the Champions League next week.
Getting through would allow the northerner, who is expected to move to SPL outfit St Johnstone immediately after the away leg, to leave the Dublin club on a high, writes Emmet Malone.
“They could be a completely different team over there,” said the 29-year-old, who saved a first-half penalty in Tallaght, “and we have to be ready for that. But I still think that if we play the way we can then we have a good chance, especially after getting a goal and keeping a clean sheet in the first leg.
“We could have beaten them by a lot more,” he added, “but given the clean sheet we have to be pleased.”
Mannus stayed on the pitch for some time after Tuesday’s game and clearly appeared to be saying his farewell to the Rovers supporters. But he refuses to speak about the move, insisting he was “just saying thanks after the game like I always do”.
Defender Craig Sives, who conceded the penalty against Flora, says the rest of the players are still unsure what is happening with Mannus, but the Scot admits the goalkeeper’s departure will be a blow.
“He has pulled me out of a hole and is a top keeper, it shows why there is so much interest in him. He has shown what a quality goalkeeper he is and, if he does move on, he would be a massive loss, obviously.”
