Stringent security measures will be implemented at Prenton Park, home of Tranmere Rovers, this evening when Shelbourne will be conceding all the advantages in maturity and technical know how to Rangers in the first leg of their UEFA Cup tie.

In the wake of the decision to remove the game from Tolka Park, it has been classified as a Category A security risk by British police, with as many as 12,000 Rangers supporters expected to make the journey to Liverpool.

Shelbourne's support, by contrast, will be negligible, but it still promises to be an eventful night in a stadium which will be staging a European fixture for the first time.

It's the second consecutive year that Shelbourne have drawn Scottish opposition in the competition, and, having come close to removing Kilmarnock, they are not without hope of achieving what they would term a good result.

"There is, of course, a big gap in standard between the Big Two and the rest in Scotland," said manager Dermot Keely. "But having done so well against Kilmarnock, our players will not be in awe of the opposition now.

"While it's a huge game for Shelbourne, Rangers probably regard it as a bit of a drag and hopefully, that's going to work in our favour. Losing home advantage at Tolka Park is a blow, but hopefully we're now going to attract most of the neutral support in the stadium."

Much of the credit for restricting Kilmarnock to an injury time winner at Rugby Park went to players like Tony Sheridan, Pat Fenlon and Mark Rutherford, and this trio will again carry much of the responsibility for ensuring another good performance. "In that particular game, I think we surprised Kilmarnock by the way we were able to settle comfortably on the ball, and that was down to the quality of our midfield players," recalls Tony McCarthy.

"Midfield is again going to be the key area against Rangers and I believe that with the benefit of the Kilmarnock experience, we can do sufficiently well there to ensure that the traffic is not all one way in the direction of our goal."

A European assignment in the third week of July is inevitably something of a lottery, but hope persists that the collective efforts of the midfielders and, further back, the resource of players like McCarthy, Pat Scully and Dave Campbell can ensure a spirited Shelbourne resistance.

Keely will not finalise his side until later today, but, almost certainly, he will put the emphasis on containment in the hope of frustrating the Scots. He will, however, have to plan without prolific goal-scorer Stephen Geoghegan, who has a groin strain.

Shelbourne will be grateful that they don't have to legislate for the skills of Andrei Kanchelskis, Rangers' expensive new signing. Together with Rod Wallace and Arthur Numan, Kanchelskis has been ruled out of the game. But even in their absence, there is a vast amount of skill and experience in the team.

Although Gabriel Amato, their £4.2 million Argentinian signing, departed prematurely from training yesterday with a groin strain, he has not yet been ruled out of the game.

Pedigree and professionalism suggest only one outcome, and yet Shelbourne, acutely aware of the need for an Irish club to make a breakthrough in Europe, are unlikely to succumb without a fight.