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Off the top of my head, there are definitely old Bohs, Shels, Derry, Dundalk, Pat's, even Drogheda sides who could potentially have done what Rovers have done this season had draws/rules been the same. It's a pity for those players that they weren't and we'll never know. Having said that, it's still a huge achievement, and it's a real pity they let this opportunity to go further slip. Their squad pre Christmas would have won more than likely.
I think over the next few seasons, we will more than likely begin to consistently have 1 club be in the group stages of some flavour, and maybe occasionally randomly get a second, Especially if someone like rovers with their co eff didn't win the league but did win the cup, they'd still have a solid chance. We're definitely not at a stage where it could be taken for granted yet.
The work Duff has done with Shels would definitely lead me to seeing them be very capable of an upset somewhere along the way, but everyone else will need a huge helping of luck for 2025 even thou I have a feeling by then at least 3 of the 4 clubs in Europe will have some of the stronger squads we'll have had.
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