Drogs vs Kiev the match part

[Ceirtlis]

Drogheda could have avoided defeat but being honest they could have lost by an awful lot more. There was no doubt there was an absolute chasm in class between the two sides but Drogheda put it up to them and let them know they were in a game. I know it is predicatable that Roddy is going to say something like he did after the game but in fairness i would have the same feelings myself. We should hold off on the cheerleading until we see how the second leg goes.

[kdjaC]

Drogheda gave themselves an outside chance of progressing further in the Champions League with a magnificent performance against the Ukrainian giants.

Taras Mykhalik shot Kiev into a 23rd-minute lead, but Ollie Cahill was denied by keeper Oleksandr Shovkovsky and the Boynesiders had two penalty claims for handball turned down.

Adam Hughes eventually levelled with a header immediately after half time and Drogs keeper Jamie Ewings made some magnificent saves to keep Paul Doolin's men level.

But Oleksandr Aliev had the final say with a terrific strike in the 86th minute.





http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2008/0729/drogheda_dynamokiev.html



kdjac

[OneRedArmy]

Am I allowed note that Ventspils lost tonight?Not on this thread you're not.

In any case, not sure how relevant that is in the long-term, other than being a statistically insignficant data point in terms of our overall coefficient ranking.

What we do know from tonight is that unsurprisingly Ukranian football is still considerably stronger than ours, but Drogs gave it a good lash. They never really had much chance of going through, but that doesn't take away from their good performance.

[Rovers Maniac]

K obviously being a sligo fan some things are lost on you, but Ukraine was once part of Russia and it really really ****es them off to call them that.

Moral victories are for losers eh? did Drogs win the match ? you shouldnt be proud one way of another your ****ing team isnt playing and it could be a long time before they do in europe unless you class Derry as a Euro adventure.

if you seen good defending from the Kiev centrebacks well im not really suprised we usually score 4 vs you i would imagine you then post on foot saying your defence was great :confused:


kdjac

lol are those trick questions :D Being a Pats fan i thought you be used to the meaning of moral victory !
i told you i'd give you time to listen to the analysis :D
God when does school start back

[kdjaC]

God when does school start back

i bet you cant wait, I bet your Power Rangers bag is packed. Sadly i dont think they do "realism" in primary so ehh there is a god and santy does exist.



We should hold off on the cheerleading until we see how the second leg goes.

0-0 away, drogs wont lose by much and Kiev dont really need to attack.



kdjac

[KianD]

As a neutral, thoroughly enjoyed the game although not the weather or the tiny seat pitch on the Connaught Road stand (I'm 6'5"!). Drogs could have got the draw at least.

[adamd164]

Collins is a bluffing gimp masquerading as a straight-talker. I just can't believe so many on here rate him as a pundit.

Kiev spent €8,000,000 on a Croatian international last week. Ukraine has a population of 50,000,000. They get about 70,000 for Champions League group stage games, which they've reached in 10 of the last 11 years. Get real, Roddy, you knobhead.

[Rovers Maniac]

i bet you cant wait, I bet your Power Rangers bag is packed. Sadly i dont think they do "realism" in primary so ehh there is a god and santy does exist.




0-0 away, drogs wont lose by much and Kiev dont really need to attack.



kdjac

LMAO off don't to say anything at all you are doing it all by yourself :D

Sorry can't write a longer reply i am on the banter with that cracking result tonight, summer football has all been worth it :D

[adamd164]

**** off you Sligo bogger. Of course it's not been worth it for you minnows. But we let ye in the league, isn't that enough. You get your big day out in the city.

[Soper]

Yeah, tar all Rovers fans with the same brush. That'll really endear your ideas to people.

[kdjaC]

LMAO off don't to say anything at all you are doing it all by yourself :D

Sorry can't write a longer reply i am on the banter with that cracking result tonight, summer football has all been worth it :D

Are you free for bookings? Some comedians have cancelled at the bulmers festival you would be a shoe in.

Summer football is worth it for the teams that can afford to pay their PROFESSIONAL players every week.

kdjac

[Rovers Maniac]

**** off you Sligo bogger. Of course it's not been worth it for you minnows. But we let ye in the league, isn't that enough. You get your big day out in the city.

Cork City founded 1984 who let who in the league ;) Sorry anyway way too busy saving my club from going out of business, we are not in the habit of letting out club die up here or giving our ground to the bog ball association, still your probably happier the men with sticks have an extra place to play :)

[paul_oshea]

lads stop distracting from the point at hand and bore off, tit for tat is tiring.

Only saw the second half due to gaelic training, but was very impressed with how organised Drogheda were, I think thats the most organised I have seen an Irish team in Europe. Having said that they were chasing shadows at time, and the gulf in class was there to be seen, especially in the tight situations and the quick one-twos. Another thing that ****ess me of is these Irish lads are pros now, and getting paid well for it, how come they are ALWAYS weaker than the opposition, especially in one on one situations, no excuse for that when they have all week to bulk up the upper-body muscle in the gym. Definitely happy to see the application of concentration the whole time(well 45 mins i saw at least ;) ) , as it was severly lacking in EL teams in Europe in years gone by. The only thing I will say was in relation to tactics/manager decisions, Chicken Kiev attacked down the left time and time again, and made space for the right winger by drawing out droghedas defence to the left, doolin should have been bringing on a defensive left-sided winger/midfielder to stop the wave and wave of attack down that side. Drogheda will be punished a lot easier out there on a wider pitch. Any manager could have seen where the main threat was coming from and should have done something to stem it.

Very disappointing to think that with all the Pool, Celtic, United supporters that go across the irish sea, wouldn't even go to watch an Irish soccer team in Europe. That place should have been full tonight.

Its over as a contest, 2 or 3-0 now, whoever thinks its going to be any different hasn't a clue, we have seen it all before.

Well done drogheda and upsetting ye didnt get the draw.

[Rovers Maniac]

Are you free for bookings? Some comedians have cancelled at the bulmers festival you would be a shoe in.

Summer football is worth it for the teams that can afford to pay their PROFESSIONAL players every week.

kdjac

Actually a little birdy told me you were having issues doing that ;), don't worry you are only new to seeing professional footballers at your club and understanding they need to be paid every week :D

[adamd164]

No, that wouldn't please me actually, there is only football.

What sickens me is to see your chairman on telly begging for a return to winter football, using summer footie as a scapegoat because you haven't been run properly. The league has made huge strides on the european stage in past years. We're climbing right up the coefficients table. So **** ye, go back to junior football if you want to play in winter.

[adamd164]

Oh, and in 24 years Cork City FC have won the league and cup the same number of times as SRFC have in 80. And that's to ignore every other club who have represented Cork. So shove it.

[Rovers Maniac]

lads stop distracting from the point at hand and bore off, tit for tat is tiring.

Only saw the second half due to gaelic training, but was very impressed with how organised Drogheda were, I think thats the most organised I have seen an Irish team in Europe. Having said that they were chasing shadows at time, and the gulf in class was there to be seen, especially in the tight situations and the quick one-twos. Another thing that ****ess me of is these Irish lads are pros now, and getting paid well for it, how come they are ALWAYS weaker than the opposition, especially in one on one situations, no excuse for that when they have all week to bulk up the upper-body muscle in the gym. Definitely happy to see the application of concentration the whole time(well 45 mins i saw at least ;) ) , as it was severly lacking in EL teams in Europe in years gone by. The only thing I will say was in relation to tactics/manager decisions, Chicken Kiev attacked down the left time and time again, and made space for the right winger by drawing out droghedas defence to the left, doolin should have been bringing on a defensive left-sided winger/midfielder to stop the wave and wave of attack down that side. Drogheda will be punished a lot easier out there on a wider pitch. Any manager could have seen where the main threat was coming from and should have done something to stem it.

Very disappointing to think that with all the Pool, Celtic, United supporters that go across the irish sea, wouldn't even go to watch an Irish soccer team in Europe. That place should have been full tonight.

Its over as a contest, 2 or 3-0 now, whoever thinks its going to be any different hasn't a clue, we have seen it all before.

Well done drogheda and upsetting ye didnt get the draw.

Good post Paul, Drogs had very little foot hold on the game and were much smaller in frame as well. Regards for the crowd the only Dublin team that gets a crowd are Bohs, the Dublin public don't care about the clubs. Maybe Shamrovers will pick up when they get out to Tallaght as they will attract number from Clondalkin and Ballyfermot as well as Tallaght. I am nearly sure i hear Rico saying that the moral victory in Europe did not count anymore recently on MNS maybe but seems to have changed his mind tonight.:o

For the 2nd leg score Please see the Kdjac post about Drogs losing but the score being 0-0 out there :D

[Rovers Maniac]

Oh, and in 24 years Cork City FC have won the league and cup the same number of times as SRFC have in 80. And that's to ignore every other club who have represented Cork. So shove it.

24 years god that is amazing for you is that a record :D?

[adamd164]

We'll still be here next month anyway.

[srfc19]

No, that wouldn't please me actually, there is only football.

What sickens me is to see your chairman on telly begging for a return to winter football, using summer footie as a scapegoat because you haven't been run properly. The league has made huge strides on the european stage in past years. We're climbing right up the coefficients table. So **** ye, go back to junior football if you want to play in winter.

sligo rovers have never played junior football
sligo rovers have won the league the exact same amount of times as cork city
sligo rovers is situated in sligo a town with a population of about 1/10th the size of cork and its suburbs.
sligo rovers are going through a tough time and we don't all follow our chairmans views on summer/winter soccer. i love summer soccer,seing good football ongood pitches in good weather is a joy to behold.
way to kick us when we're down

[adamd164]

I actually would like to apologise. I sympathise with Sligo's (mostly decent) support base, but I have a rather severe migraine, and this clown was bugging me with his digs on Drogs tonight and summer football. It would be a disaster for anyone who cares about Irish football if Sligo were to go down.

[soccerc]

Actually a little birdy told me you were having issues doing that ;), don't worry you are only new to seeing professional footballers at your club and understanding they need to be paid every week :D

That would be the Mocking Bird.

Anyway, no issues with paying players at Pats.

[hedderman]

More than anything I thought it was a really great game of football played at a very high tempo.

I suppose you could say it was a fair result although Drogheda played very well, especially in the second half.

I thought Zayed played considerably better than he did for Drogs against Derry. Every player from Drogheda upped their performance level significantly but I suppose that is to be expected in European football. Richie Baker worked exceptionally hard tonight.

I suppose Roddy did make some valid points but it's almost as if he was hoping that Drogheda would lose.

If I was in Dublin I would have been at the game. From shots of the Jodi stand, I didn't see many jerseys from other EL clubs. Any approximate attendance figures? 5,000 sounds very low.

[TheBoss]

Dynamo were too quick in the first half, their movement was just at another level compared to Drogheda. They scored a poor goal in terms of defending, at least let them outplay you and tap it in, always hard to recover from that.

The 2nd half was a bit even to be fair, although Dynamo did have a lot more shots, they did not really threaten the goal enough for a team of their quality. Drogheda pressed them and got into them, and again, gave away a silly goal.

I thought Ewing was hit and miss tonight, did save a few goals at times but the goals that went in were his fault to be honest, he did look a little out of his depth at times.
Maher and especially Gartland were brilliant, played to their max. Keegan was really good in the 2nd half, broke up a lot of their attacks.

Drogs will do well to lose by a goal out there, I would think.

[srfc19]

I actually would like to apologise. I sympathise with Sligo's (mostly decent) support base, but I have a rather severe migraine, and this clown was bugging me with his digs on Drogs tonight and summer football. It would be a disaster for anyone who cares about Irish football if Sligo were to go down.

apology accepted...
i only saw the second half as well,but was rather impressed,kiev are a big team and it would have been a rout a few short years ago as put by one of the pundits,can't remember which....the ties dead but hopeflly we'l see another decent show by drogs

[Saint_Charlie]

Maybe Shamrovers will pick up when they get out to Tallaght as they will attract number from Clondalkin and Ballyfermot as well as Tallaght.

Ballyfermot is a 10-minute (or less) walk away from Richmond :)

[Rovers1]

**** off you Sligo bogger. Of course it's not been worth it for you minnows. But we let ye in the league, isn't that enough. You get your big day out in the city.

muppet :rolleyes:

[bennocelt]

Drogheda did well considering the opposition. Hope Celtic get Kiev, cause Im dead sure they would beat them at home too.

Some people on this site are unreal if they are actually were expecting a result tonight. Kiev was a huge step up in class, and the fact that Drogheda made a come back should be something to celebrate.

As fior the match itself, Zayed was useless, and seemed to be always in the wrong place at the wrong time. I thought the substitutions were a bit strange, and cahill (who had a good game) should have been taken off as he was well kanckered with 20 mins to go, he was giving the ball away to many times in the centre of the pitch
The goalie was well dodgy, some good saves with his feet, but you can imagine a defender would be ****ing himself with Ewing behind him.
And the Kiev centre backs looked bad. Also did anyone notice how many times Drogheda won high balls against Kiev - that is their weakness.

[ifk101]

Very open game.

RTE's commentary was hysterical at times.

Kiev were given a lot of time on the ball and had an extra swagger about them.

Ewings (if I'm not mistaken started the season as third choice with Drogheda) was at fault for both goals, but he did make a couple of good saves.

Disappointing Drogheda couldn't get the draw but looking forward to seeing what they can do out in Kiev next week.

[Denis The Red]

Isn't it a fair reflection on how well Drogs did and how well the league is doing to say I'm gutted for them. To lose 2-1 to a team of Kiev's european pedigree and be disapointed shows that Irish football should no longer be seen as whipping boys but should be shown some respect.
IMO it's down to summer football, a debate for another day.
Drogs fans should be proud of their players and club. They're a credit to the league. Feck the begrudgers.
Can't see them going through now but miracles have happened before, best of luck to them and to Pat's and Cork, let's all get behind them.

[Duggie]

gave them way to much space in the first half, i dont care who your playing, if u give space like that you will be punished. great in the second half when they had a go at them though. keegan, cahill and gartland were brilliant. faz was absolutely useless last night, dont know what was wrong with him. couldnt pass a ball 2 yards. will be tough in the second leg but hope they put in a good display. well done drogs :ball:

[SeanDrog]

Drogheda did well considering the opposition. Hope Celtic get Kiev, cause Im dead sure they would beat them at home too.

Some people on this site are unreal if they are actually were expecting a result tonight. Kiev was a huge step up in class, and the fact that Drogheda made a come back should be something to celebrate.

As fior the match itself, Zayed was useless, and seemed to be always in the wrong place at the wrong time. I thought the substitutions were a bit strange, and cahill (who had a good game) should have been taken off as he was well kanckered with 20 mins to go, he was giving the ball away to many times in the centre of the pitch
The goalie was well dodgy, some good saves with his feet, but you can imagine a defender would be ****ing himself with Myler behind him.
And the Kiev centre backs looked bad. Also did anyone notice how many times Drogheda won high balls against Kiev - that is their weakness.

very fair comment IMO - if people thought we should beat them then they are nuts, a draw would have been fab but next best was a decent performance against one of the elite of Europe. Before their second they were getting ****ed off and beginning to shout at the ref etc etc because they found themselves in a right tussle of a game. No doubt they were better - of course they would be, all Drogs could do was try and give them a game and hope for a bit of luck on the night. Away match appears like a hammering in the waiting but who knows.

As for Roddy - what a gem with comments like "drogheda are out of their depth" - oh the wisdom - no ****e sherlock. Sure we can't beat keiv , might as well pack the league up now. :rolleyes:

[passinginterest]

I only caught the second half too as I had a match myself and I thought it was a wonderfully entertaining game. Jumped out of my seat when Drogheda scored and was really gutted when Kiev got the winner. It was great to see Drogheda have a go, it would have been easy to play with 10 men behind the ball and try and keep the score down but they went and played football and had a real go, leaving themselves exposed at times but showing that they were well able to play football. It's a pity that Drogheda have been struggling this season, they lack confidence at the back and Zayed is totally off form.

I don't think any neutral, barstooler, part-time fan, call them what you will, could fail to have enjoyed the game and been impressed with the manner in which Drogheda played. Hopefully a few more will now be tempted to attend live league games and support out league.

[Rovers Maniac]

SeanDrog i don't think people are saying you should have beaten Kiev, but this type of rubbish 'great night fro Drogs' or 'Super Drogs' is absolute tosh. Drogheda lost, end of, thats the bottom line no moral victories etc etc when you are a full time team i don't think we should celebrate losers i thought Ireland had moved on from that mind set?

[passinginterest]

SeanDrog i don't think people are saying you should have beaten Kiev, but this type of rubbish 'great night fro Drogs' or 'Super Drogs' is absolute tosh. Drogheda lost, end of, thats the bottom line no moral victories etc etc when you are a full time team i don't think we should celebrate losers i thought Ireland had moved on from that mind set?

It was very obviously a disappointing night for Drogheda, they came within touching distance of a draw with a team that has qualified for the group stages of the Champions League for 10 of the last 11 seasons (this is the holy grail for the League of Ireland). The plus side is that they competed, while they were outclassed at times they still came close to getting a result. The tie may be out of reach now but hopefully they'll put in another creditable performance in Kiev.

The professionalism of Drogheda allowed them to up the tempo in the second half, rather than fade away and sit in front of their own 18 yard box praying for the final whistle. It was a step up from the Shels performance at home to Deportivo, another indicator of improvement.

[swinfordfc]

Drogs in fariest did well but in the first half - they gave Kiev too much space. in the second half when ye put some pressure on them, they did not like it one bit and they defenders are poor. However they midfielders are very good in creating space and putting balls through to the forward. Drogs goalie was very poor for the first goal but in fairest to him - he was outstanding for the rest of the game. Baker was very poor for the second goal and you are always told never to turn your back on a player and he did - it was very stupid what he did and it cost the team - you would think a player of his experienced would know that!

[paul_oshea]

The professionalism of Drogheda allowed them to up the tempo in the second half, rather than fade away and sit in front of their own 18 yard box praying for the final whistle. It was a step up from the Shels performance at home to Deportivo, another indicator of improvement.

Very good post PI. I too felt the same after watching the second half of this game.

I still think though there are certain things that Irish teams can improve upon individually, not related to skill/talent/natural ability etc. A lot of the drogheda lads seemed wrecked by 70 minutes, others also were too easily fondled off the ball. Rosenborg are a good example, all their players were always physically very fit and strong, Irish teams should try to aspire to this as there is no real reason why they cant match their counterparts in this regard, and it would certainly make a difference in future European games, make up for what they lack in skill in brawn etc.

[passinginterest]

Very good post PI. I too felt the same after watching the second half of this game.

I still think though there are certain things that Irish teams can improve upon individually, not related to skill/talent/natural ability etc. A lot of the drogheda lads seemed wrecked by 70 minutes, others also were too easily fondled off the ball. Rosenborg are a good example, all their players were always physically very fit and strong, Irish teams should try to aspire to this as there is no real reason why they cant match their counterparts in this regard, and it would certainly make a difference in future European games, make up for what they lack in skill in brawn etc.

I think if we look at professionalism in rugby it seems to take at least a decade for that extra strength and fitness to be properly developed. The Irish rugby players have only caught up with the other professional sides in recent years (you might even argue that they still lag behind a little). The only sad thing is that professional football in Ireland is unlikely to be sustainable long term, Drogheda are subject to the whims of their investors, they don't have the revenue streams to realistically sustain a full time setup, in the current environment, without making massive losses. Unfortunately a lot of other Irish clubs are in the same boat.

[Steve Bruce]

Drogheda done very well last night and got as good a result as you could really expect. I think out there though will be a different matter and Drogs will do well to keep the score respectable.

I think matches like this are good for the LOI, who are aspiring to get to a level that 3rd round qualifiers is being hit every season. This shows you that the LOI are a lot closer than 10 years ago but still have a fair bit to go.

Unfortunately though I do think though Kiev could go up a few gears, which is the worrying thing, but if Drogheda can keep it tight at the back and counter attack you may be able to make a good game of it out their and sneak a draw, which although would put you out, it still gives you co-efficient points and gives LOI good coverage that a LOI club can match one of the better teams in Europe.

All in all this is good experience for Drogs and the LOI, maybe I’m wrong but I think this shows you the standard that the LOI should be aspiring to. Unfortunately as an IL fan, we don’t seem to have any European Aspirations at all, which personally I disagree with.

[Duggie]

just gave them way to much space and respect in the first half. but anyway we are progressing no doubt but we cant just expect to beat teams like kiev. we can now compete we just need to go from here and develop more. if kiev were playing a part time drogheda last night it would have been a massacre. why dont drogheda go out and buy a proper striker ??

[pete]

I think the crowd was disappointing last night as would think maximum of 5000 boosted by 500+ Ukranians. Sitting in the Connaught St side & little evidence that many non-LOI fans there. IMO even though I paid it E25 is far too expensive to sit in the rain on derelict terrace.

Drogs were let down by individual mistakes & some weak links. While he was better when Drogs were on top I thought Keegan was terrible in the first half. Drogs also seem to suffer from using players coming back from injury - Shelley looked off the pace when he came on. Was very surprised to see Kudovavic taken off as he was their best player. A draw would have been a fair result as for all their chances Kiev did not hit the target often. Ewing was poor as it is mark of desperation saving with his feet so much.

Drogs will get beaten badly next week. At least 3-0.

[Nesta99]

The Drogheda of last year would have got a result i believe! They were sloppy on occaisons and put themselves under pressure....against a side who could change tempo amazingly. Drogheda did well and games like these show where we need to develop; fitness and concentration are there by and large, composure and guile will happen with experience. After that we will just have to wait and see how our youth development pans out. To use a political comment (in reverse) Irish sides need to be lucky all of the time, European sides only need to be lucky once. 2nd qualifying round is now absolutely minimum standard to kick on from.

As for Roddy, every time Con asked Rico about when he managed in Europe etc, Roddy would jump in with a 'when i managed ... and played in these games ... blah blah' lest we forget!! flipping plonker:rolleyes:

PS Did anyone else hear Collins swear when the Shels result was flashed up...must have handed over the weekly wage to the bookies....

[Duggie]

kiev were prob one of the hardest draws after last nights showing aswell.

[superfrank]

I think a draw would have been flattering for Drogs. Kiev had dozens of chances and should have scored a load more. It was heartbreaking the way Alliiev scored but it was a fair result.

At 1-1, there might have been a chance but at 2-1, with Kiev at home, I think even the most optimistic fans would struggle to justify backing Drogs.

I thought Ewings did very well, both goals aside. Gartland was outstanding in the second half for them. I don't see how Cahill got MOTM or how Zayed stayed on so long.

I was impressed with the Dinamo fans last night. They made a lot of noise considering they were outnumbered 10 to one.

[bennocelt]

SeanDrog i don't think people are saying you should have beaten Kiev, but this type of rubbish 'great night fro Drogs' or 'Super Drogs' is absolute tosh. Drogheda lost, end of, thats the bottom line no moral victories etc etc when you are a full time team i don't think we should celebrate losers i thought Ireland had moved on from that mind set?

man, i dont really think you have a clue about football:eek:

Drogheda were playing a team that have spent the last 11 seasons or whatever in the CL proper, and some of those past teams they had were a joy to watch. In fact Kiev nearly always play good passing football, and I would expect them to cause a few teams problems this season (thats if they can sort out their defense)


As someone else pointed out, it takes a good while to see the benefits of full time football. And for the last few years there can be no argument that LOi teams have improved in Europe

(by the way Kievs co efficient was 38,ooo or something, the Drogs was about 2000!!!! that does show the level they were up against)

[Fivesilver]

i don't think we should celebrate losers i thought Ireland had moved on from that mind set?

That you Roy?

[CuanaD]

Isn't it a fair reflection on how well Drogs did and how well the league is doing to say I'm gutted for them. To lose 2-1 to a team of Kiev's european pedigree and be disapointed shows that Irish football should no longer be seen as whipping boys but should be shown some respect.
IMO it's down to summer football, a debate for another day.
Drogs fans should be proud of their players and club. They're a credit to the league. Feck the begrudgers.
Can't see them going through now but miracles have happened before, best of luck to them and to Pat's and Cork, let's all get behind them.
I agree totally.
(although I'd add professionalism to summer football - but as you say thats for another day)

Drogs were not outclassed & played like a team who knew they could win the game. Kiev were slightly better on the night (& definitely have a couple of class players - watching their No4 was worth the €25 ticket by himself) but the score draw may have been a fairer result IMO.

Irish football has progressed from expecting to lose at the first hurdle, past hoping to get a team into the second round, to expecting to be able to get to this level every year & hoping for one of our teams qualifying for the NEXT round - our results in the past 5 seasons all show this. The next step is regular participation in the 3rd rounds, which we could see in the next 2-3 years, before we can look at the possibility of regular (or any) participation in group stages. So, 2 steps taken in the past 5 years, 2 to go . . . .


:ball:

[Steve Bruce]

I agree totally.
(although I'd add professionalism to summer football - but as you say thats for another day)

Drogs were not outclassed & played like a team who knew they could win the game. Kiev were slightly better on the night (& definitely have a couple of class players - watching their No4 was worth the €25 ticket by himself) but the score draw may have been a fairer result IMO.

Irish football has progressed from expecting to lose at the first hurdle, past hoping to get a team into the second round, to expecting to be able to get to this level every year & hoping for one of our teams qualifying for the NEXT round - our results in the past 5 seasons all show this. The next step is regular participation in the 3rd rounds, which we could see in the next 2-3 years, before we can look at the possibility of regular (or any) participation in group stages. So, 2 steps taken in the past 5 years, 2 to go . . . .


:ball:

Unfortunately the 2 steps taken are a lot easier than the 2 steps to go. That is not to take away from the progress that has been made. Although the first 2 steps are a lot easier, it is still very difficult and you managed to do it. This is something that the Irish League is still trying to achieve and still a very long way away from achieving.

I think the 2/3 years to regularly qualify for 3rd round is unrealistic. I think 5 to 7 years would be a bit more realistic if not still a bit optimistic. Shelbourne are the only side to reach the 3rd round and that was a few years ago. So I think regularly qualifying for the 3rd round is still a bit away as the next level of football is a considerable gap to the level we have been competing at.

[DUFC4life]

SeanDrog i don't think people are saying you should have beaten Kiev, but this type of rubbish 'great night fro Drogs' or 'Super Drogs' is absolute tosh. Drogheda lost, end of, thats the bottom line no moral victories etc etc when you are a full time team i don't think we should celebrate losers i thought Ireland had moved on from that mind set?
i agree about the moral victory bit the fact is we lost but it was a great night for drogheda. everybody was expecting a 3 or 4 nil win for kiev last night but we put it up to them tried to play football and despite hanging on at times we gave a team who are more used to playing man united and real marid a run for their money. they bought a player for 6 mill 2 weeks ago. with that money somebody could probably buy drogheda united at least 3 times. so the fact that we gave them a big scare and were very unlucky not to get a draw can make it a great night for drogheda united and a step in the right direction for the eircom league. also fair play to the amount of non drogheda fans there last night. seen an awful lot of finn harps cork city limerick etc jackets.

[pete]

The new changes to Uefa Cup in particular may change this but based on the current system LOI clubs on the verge of permanent seeding on the 1st qualifying rounds. This is the reason countries such as Latvia & Lithuania are still ahead of us. Seeding should ensure relative easy progression to the 2nd round (easy ranking points too) & if nothing else bigger games & money money.

It is still possible if lucky to draw teams easier than Kiev in the 3rd qualifying round (Kiev will be seeded in that round) so really that is the target to be looking at.