‘It had everything' admits Stephen Kenny as he hails St Pat's rain-soaked extra-time Conference League win v Nomme Kalju

The Irish Sun

4 days ago

STEPHEN KENNY praised St Pat's for checking out of the Four Seasons with a rain-soaked aggregate win over Nomme Kalju in the UEFA Conference League.
Joe Redmond's 90th minute goal sent the second leg in Tallinn to extra time after the hosts had overturned the first leg deficit with goals either side of half-time.
2
St Patrick's Athletic manager Stephen Kenny praised his side's win over Nomma Kalju
Credit: Evaldas Semiotas/Sportsfile
2
Jake Mulraney and Joe Redmond scored as they came from 2-0 down
Credit: Evaldas Semiotas/Sportsfile
And with the rain cascading onto the pitch below,
Jake
Mulraney clinched the
Kenny said: 'It had everything.
'It had four seasons in the game. It finished with monsoon rain and puddles.
'We showed great character to come back and win the game which was really important.
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'They scored off their first chance, really. That was so disappointing and then when they scored again, we were up against it.
'They were sitting with a back five. We were very persistent. Their goalkeeper made some unbelievable saves in the game but thankfully we managed to get the equaliser and the winner.
'We are delighted to win it because we know how hard it is to get through away from home in
Europe
.
'To come from 2-0 down, to have setbacks such as Aidan Keena's, with a potential thigh muscle injury, was really testament to our character.'
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Reward for their smash-and-grab in Estonia is a date with Besiktas in the third qualifying round.
The Turkish giants, coached by former
striker
and manager Ole Gunnar Solksjaer, will present a significant step-up after dropping down from the
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But while wary of the threat they will pose, Kenny insisted his focus is on Sunday's Premier Division fixture against
Pat's look set to be without Aidan Keena and
Jason
McClelland after they both were taken off injured on Thursday.
And Kenny said: 'I always respect my opponent. People think we should be beating Hegelmann and Kalju and should be losing to Besiktas.
'This is our tenth game in Europe in just a year. We have just one defeat.
'They have a lot of quality. I have not really watched them play yet because I was firmly focused on this game.
'We fly home tomorrow but before we do so, we are switched on to Waterford on Sunday, which is a big game for us. That is my real focus now.
'We have lost two players to injury tonight and we lost Zack from the last game. We have to get ready for Sunday.
'It is a great game to play one of the big Turkish clubs, an institution in the capital, but one we must prepare for and be ready and give ourselves every chance.
'It will be tough as we have Waterford and
Sligo
amid the two games.'