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Saints march on in Europa as Sligo falter

UEFA Europa League 2nd Qualifying Rnd 2nd Leg

 

St Patrick's Ath 2-1 NK Å iroki Brijeg AET (3-1 on agg)

 

CHRISTY FAGAN scored an extra-time winner to delight Richmond Park as St Patrick's advanced to a third round Europa League meeting with Bundesliga giants Hannover 96.

Striker Fagan, who also scored in last week's 1-1 draw in Bosnia, pounced to rifle home from close range in the 105th minute after skipper Conor Kenna nodded down a free kick from James Chambers.

The victory, remarkably St. Patrick's fifth successive win in Inchicore in Europe, will see Liam Buckley's side take on the German side at Tallaght Stadium next Thursday with the return in Hannover the following week.

Unchanged from the first leg, St. Pat's started a little nervously as Å iroki Brijeg took the early initiative, Brazilian-born Ricardo Baiano blazing over the top after good approach play by Dino Coric and Kresimir Kordic on four minutes.

St. Pat's gradually settled to take the game to their visitors and might have been ahead on 26 minutes. Å iroki Brijeg keeper Luka Bilobrk parried a header from Greg Bolger from a Chambers free-kick with Fagan then adjudged to have fouled Mateo Bertosa as he tried to get to the rebound.

Bilobrk didn't look sure of himself at all and he failed to gather another Chambers free kick on 33 minutes before smothering the loose ball at the feet of Chris Forrester.

Defensively brittle in general, St. Pat's punished Å iroki Brijeg to deservedly take the lead on 39 minutes.

Bilobrk flapped at a Sean O'Connor cross which Forrester drilled low back across the goal. Fagan got a touch before midfielder John Russell shot into an empty net from inside the six yard box.

Å iroki Brijeg pinned St. Pat's back in the early stages of the second half. But it was Buckley's side who almost doubled their lead on the counter in the 59th minute, Bilobrk with another unorthodox parry save from O'Connor's effort from distance.

The Bosnian side had far more purpose to their game since half-time, however, and they levelled on 65 minutes. Wagner's initial shot was deflected for a corner. Skipper Dalibo Silic whipped the ball in and big central defender Ivica Dzidic powered a towering header to the roof of the net.

ST PATRICK'S ATHLETIC: Clarke; O'Brien, Kenna, Browne, Bermingham; Russell, Chambers, Bolger; Forrester (J Kelly 105), Fagan (Flood 111), O'Connor (Meenan 89).

NK Å IROKI BRIJEG: Bilobrk; Coric, I. Dzidic (D Dzidic 85), Jese, Bertosa; Zlomislic, Wagner; Baiano (Ivankovic 85), Kordic, Bloudek (Roskam 63), Kordic.

REFEREE: D Aytekin (Germany).

 

UEFA Europa League 2nd Qualifying Rnd 2nd Leg

Sligo Rovers 1-1 Spartak Trnava (2-4 on agg)

 

SLIGO ROVERS' European adventure is over for another season after the league-leaders could only manage a draw with Slovakian side Spartak Trnava at the Showgrounds.

 

Rovers went into the game with hopes high of causing an upset having claimed an away goal in last week's 3-1 defeat in Slovakia.

 

And the home side did more than enough to win the game on the night, but poor finishing and bad luck cost them dearly as Trnava advanced to a third round tie against Steaua Bucharest.

 

In fact Rovers had to come from behind just to earn a draw on the night, when Jason McGuinness's injury-time header cancelling out Peter Cvirik's opener against the run of play on 70 minutes.

 

Rovers had dominated up to that point and really should have went ahead on 26 minutes, when the outstanding Romuald Boco was fouled in the area, and Danny North's penalty was saved by keeper Miroslav Filiipko.

 

Gavin Peers also flashed a header narrowly over the top, and Danny Ventre was denied by Filiipko's last-gasp diving save on 39 minutes, while McGuinness saw another effort cleared off the line as the visitors rode their luck.

 

That all changed when Crivik picked out the bottom left corner of the net on 70 minutes from a free-kick to leave Rovers with a mountain to climb.

 

It nearly got worse shortly after when substitute Michael Gasparik was sent through one-on-one with Gary Rogers, but smashed his shot off the crossbar.

 

And the 3,754 were at least given a deserved consolation goal to cheer when McGuinness nodded home Joseph Ndo's free-kick from close range in stoppage-time.

 

SLIGO ROVERS: Rogers, Conneely, Peers, McGuinness, Gaynor, Millien (Connolly 77), Cawley, Ndo, Ventre (Lynch 72), Boco, North (Quigley 50).

 

SPARTAK TRNAVA: Filiipko, Vyskocil (Carmota 62), Jamecka, Cvirik, Stozicky, Mikovic (Gasparik 68), Hamzel, Gross, Karhan, Schranz (Koubsky 85), Bicak.

 

REFEREE: M Layushkin (Russia).