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Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Linfield draw Shelbourne in Champions League qualifying
Irish Premiership winners Linfield have been drawn against Shelbourne in the first round of Champions League qualifying. Shelbourne, managed by former Chelsea and Republic of Ireland winger Damien Duff, won their first League of Ireland Premier Division title in 18 years in 2024 after a dramatic final-day victory over Derry City. Advertisement David Healy's Linfield won the Irish Premiership by 22 points in an impressive campaign for the Blues. The first leg in will take place at Tolka Park on Tuesday 8 or Wednesday 9 July, before the return fixture at Windsor Park on 15 or 16 July. Linfield last faced Shels in the 2006 Setanta Cup group stages, when they won 2-0 at Windsor Park before a goalless draw in the return fixture. One year earlier, David Jeffrey's side won the cross-border tournament by beating Shelbourne 2-0 in the final at Tolka Park. Cliftonville will find out their Uefa Conference League opponents in the first-round draw at 15:00 BST. Advertisement Jim Magilton's European play-off winners are unseeded and will face one of Icelandic side Vikingur, Partizani of Albania, Floriana from Malta and Gibraltar side St Joseph's. Irish Cup winners Dungannon Swifts will discover their second-round opponents on Wednesday.
Irish Daily Mirror
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Shelbourne legend's 'disgust at Linfield game, I threw my medal in a river'
Stuart Byrne would love Damien Duff's Shelbourne to get revenge on Linfield - as it would put the old boys out of their misery. Byrne was stand-in captain for the day when Shels played Linfield in the inaugural 2005 Setanta Cup final in front of 10,000 people at a pulsating Tolka Park. But the day ended in disaster from a Reds perspective as the Blues ran out comfortable 2-0 winners to claim the All-Island bragging rights. And Shelbourne legend Byrne told Mirror Sport last night: 'I'm still absolutely disgusted with that game, and I didn't hang onto the losers' medal either. 'When all the crowd left Tolka Park, I walked out of the dressing room, up the steps of the Riverside Stand and when I got to the top, I f***** it into the Tolka river! 'It's been there that long, it's probably a bronze medal now. It's the single most disappointing night of my football career. The Hibs of Malta game in the Champions League is a close second and still haunts me, but Linfield is number one.' Byrne continued: 'Ask any of the lads who played that day and they'll tell you the same, and I'm sure the supporters know what we're on about.' Tuesday's Champions League draw at UEFA headquarters in Nyon threw up a rematch with the respective champions on both sides of the border set to clash. Click this link or scan the QR code to receive the latest League of Ireland news and top stories from the Irish Mirror. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Shelbourne are at home in the first-leg, with Tolka Park set to host the game once passed fit by UEFA chiefs. The club has been carrying out work to meet criteria for the opening round of qualifiers and expect to play there. Security arrangements surrounding an All-Island clash of this magnitude will create headaches but Byrne feels Shels would lose a big advantage by playing anywhere else. 'The players, fans and Damien Duff will all want to play in Tolka and the only reason you'd move elsewhere is for money as the demand will be that big,' said Byrne. 'I just hope Shels can get the job done in this tie as it would quieten the demons that most of that 2005 team still carry around with them. 'That game should serve as a reminder to the current team that you might be the better side on paper, but it doesn't always pan out that way. 'I firmly believe Shelbourne are the better team in this (Champions League) tie, but they have to do it the hard way, being away in the second leg.' Byrne added: 'It's a mouthwatering tie, but dangerous too. Nobody needs a history lesson but when Linfield come to town they bring a lot of history and a big crowd. 'To get over the line, you have to negotiate the emotion of all that and hopefully Shels can manage it as I'd love a bit of revenge.' In drawing Linfield, Shelbourne dodged a date with Steaua Bucharest of Romania, Breidablick of Iceland, FC Drita of Kosovo and Lincoln Red Imps of Gibraltar. Duff's men will be favourites, but Linfield will fancy this draw too and won't be fearing the League of Ireland champions even if they will be out-of-season. And Byrne reckons that out-of-season argument is no longer particularly relevant with David Healy's men now a full-time entity. Ex-Dundalk ace Chris Shields is a key man in the Blues' ranks, but will be suspended for the first-leg in Dublin. Byrne, who ended up winning the Setanta Cup with Drogheda United, two years after losing that final to Linfield, said: 'Linfield may be out of season, but I'm wary of that. 'I don't buy into that stuff too much. The 'out of season' argument belongs in the amateur and part-time eras. It's a different story with seasoned pros who know how to condition themselves and I just don't buy into it. 'Linfield are a huge club and I'll be watching this closely as I've always felt we should be playing in the same league as these teams - an All-Island league. 'You can't underestimate Linfield at any time. Some Northern teams are a good bit below League of Ireland sides, but I'd never disregard Linfield as they're a huge club.' Linfield fans will be restricted to a limited number of tickets as Tolka Park's capacity is reduced to approximately 3,500 for European matches. Shels only have to give a 5% allocation to their opposition, which means no more than 175/200 Blues fans are likely to be at the game itself. With the transfer window approaching, Duff will strengthen his squad with the prospect of multiple games to contend with, here and on the continent. But while Europe takes sharper focus, Duff insists the league is still the priority for the reigning champions even though they are 12 points adrift of leaders Shamrock Rovers. Shels boss Duff said: Duff said: 'That's where I guess you'd be wise as a management team, picking teams, having a squad. There's a (transfer) window coming up. Lets call a spade a spade, we will look to do business. I still think three games a week is loads. 'League of Ireland teams are like 'ugh', but we're going to have to deal with it and lads are going to have to get their head around it. 'I dealt with it for 15, 16, 20 years but I still always have that 'I have to go again?' Yeah, you do. It's your f******* job and it's the best days of your life, playing football.' Duff added: 'That's up to lads looking after themselves, recovering, putting in the best account of themselves and trying to be wise and pick the right team at the right time.' Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email.
Scottish Sun
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Scottish Sun
Rangers and Celtic heroes to lead teams into stunning all-Ireland Champions League shoot-out after box office Euro draw
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) THE 2025-26 campaign officially got under way today with the first round draws for all the European competitions - and already there's been some major box office. That's because the first round qualifying tie for the Champions League pits Northern Irish champions Linfield against Republic of Ireland champions Shelbourne. 3 Shelbourne manager Damien Duff after his side's victory Credit: Sportsfile 3 Neil Lennon with John Kennedy and Damien Duff Credit: Kenny Ramsay - The Sun Glasgow 3 David Healy, ex-Rangers and Northern Ireland player, Linfield manager Credit: Willie Vass And just happening to take charge of the two teams are Rangers hero David Healy, now of Linfield, and former Celtic first team coach Damien Duff at Shelbourne. They're two massive characters and there was excitement to prior to the draw as everyone knew there was a twenty percent chance of the two teams meeting. Linfield were seeded in Group 2 of the draw, while Shelbourne were unseeded. And the Uefa draw has duly obliged. The first leg in Dublin on 8/9 July and the second in Belfast on 15/16 July. The two teams met in the final of inaugural Setanta Cup competition between the teams from the north and the south, with Linfield running out 2-0 winners. A league and league cup double winner in his time with the Gers, Healy has been linked with various managers jobs in Scotland - most recently Dundee. The Dark Blues were granted permission from Linfield to speak to the ex-Rangers and Northern Ireland striker. But that role went to Steven Pressley instead - leaving the four-time Northern Irish manager of the year at Windsor Park. Former Chelsea, Newcastle and Republic of Ireland winger Duff has been a breath of fresh air since leaving a first team coaching job with the Hoops to embark on his first manager's job at Shelbourne. Celtic transfer special - Nygren in and Kyogo to return They clinched the FAI Premier League title in 2024 and are desperate to emulate or better the European acheivements of Shamrock Rovers, who performed with credit in the Conference League phase last season. Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Linfield draw Shelbourne in Champions League qualifying
Irish Premiership winners Linfield have been drawn against Shelbourne in the first round of Champions League qualifying. Shelbourne, managed by former Chelsea and Republic of Ireland winger Damien Duff, won their first League of Ireland Premier Division title in 18 years in 2024 after a dramatic final-day victory over Derry City. Advertisement David Healy's Linfield won the Irish Premiership by 22 points in an impressive campaign for the Blues. The first leg in will take place at Tolka Park on Tuesday 8 or Wednesday 9 July, before the return fixture at Windsor Park on 15 or 16 July. Linfield last faced Shels in the 2006 Setanta Cup group stages, when they won 2-0 at Windsor Park before a goalless draw in the return fixture. One year earlier, David Jeffrey's side won the cross-border tournament by beating Shelbourne 2-0 in the final at Tolka Park. Cliftonville will find out their Uefa Conference League opponents in the first-round draw at 15:00 BST. Advertisement Jim Magilton's European play-off winners are unseeded and will face one of Icelandic side Vikingur, Partizani of Albania, Floriana from Malta and Gibraltar side St Joseph's. Irish Cup winners Dungannon Swifts will discover their second-round opponents on Wednesday.
