Shamrock Rovers face potential All Ireland derby with Cliftonville in UEFA Conference League
SHAMROCK ROVERS WILL play the winner of Irish League side Cliftonville and St Joseph's of Gibraltar in the second qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League.
Stephen Bradley's side were parachuted from the first-round pots yesterday to this afternoon's draw after Drogheda United's expulsion from the competition on multi-club grounds was upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Monday.
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The League of Ireland club will play the first leg away followed by the return in Tallaght Stadium as they bid to reach the league phase of the competition for the third time under Bradley.
If St Patrick's Athletic overcome Lithuanian side FC Hegelmann they will join Rovers in the second round with a tie against either Kalju of Estonia or Alabania's Partizani.
Shelbourne's potential opponents in the second qualifying round of the Champions League have also been confirmed. Should Damien Duff's men come out on top in the All Ireland derby with Linfield in the first round then they will face Qarabag.
The Azerbaijan outfit are seasoned European operators and have played in the group/league stage of the Europa League in nine of the past 11 seasons. They reached the Champions League in 2017/18 and Conference League in 21/22 in the other two campaigns.
However, a defeat to the Irish League champions would mean Shels face either FK Žalgiris (Lithuania) or Hamrun Spartans (Malta) in the second qualifying round of the Conference League.
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