As League of Ireland European nights go, Thursday evening wasn't a bad one.
Shamrock Rovers fell to a narrow 1-0 loss to Celje in their Europa League third qualifying round first leg in Slovenia, leaving the tie very much in the balance ahead of the return at Tallaght Stadium next week.
Tallaght was the temporary home of St Patrick's Athletic for their Conference League third qualifying round first leg, as Stephen Kenny's side secured a 1-0 lead ahead of a marathon trip to Azerbaijan for the return against Sabah FK.
Directly before that trek begins, the Saints will be making the shorter journey to the west of Ireland for an SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division encounter with Galway United.
If Kenny and the club had their way though, they would have their Sunday free to prepare to cross the continent on Monday for a journey that includes a stopover in Turkey.
The Saints had asked Galway for a postponement, to no avail, meaning that they must squeeze a trip to Eamonn Deacy Park in between their two encounters with Sabah.
Things have been going well on the European front for the Inchicore club, as they remain unbeaten from their three continental outings so far this summer.
It's just as well for supporters, as they are out of the FAI Cup and their inconsistent league form leaves very little scope for excitement as we move towards the end of the season.
Since Kenny took the reins in May, St Pat's have won just three league games out of 10, leaving them languishing fourth-from-bottom ahead of the visit to Galway.
They may be buoyed, however, by a 3-2 home win over Sligo Rovers last Sunday, which came in somewhat controversial circumstances.
Six minutes into added time, Luke Turner appeared to fall backwards in the box in front of Sligo's Ellis Chapman, leading to referee Rob Hennessy pointing to the spot.
Brandon Kavanagh stepped up to score his second of the game for the hosts, and secure a confidence-boosting win for Kenny and his team.
On Sunday, they visit a Galway United team who continue to defy the odds during their first season back in the top flight.
While fellow promoted side Waterford have received many plaudits for their attacking prowess, Galway's success has been built around a strong defence.
John Caulfield's side have the second-best defensive record in the league behind leaders Shels, with Galway's goal being breached just 18 times in their opening 25 games.
A midsummer slump saw them win just one game in five but the rot has stopped with three wins out of their last four outings, including a 6-0 hammering of Longford Town in the FAI Cup.
While the Tribesmen have upset some of the league's stellar names this season, they are yet to get anything off Pat's.
Then managed by Jon Daly, the Dublin side won 1-0 at Eamonn Deacy Park on the opening night of the season, while Kenny's first victory as manager came courtesy of a 2-1 win at Richmond Park at the end of May.
Galway United v St Pat's has a 3pm kick-off on Sunday, ahead of a 7pm kick-off between Shamrock Rovers and Drogheda United.
Like Pat's, Europe is providing a nice distraction for Hoops fans, who have also seen their side exit the cup at the first hurdle, while wobbling in the league.
That cup loss to Bohemians prolonged the morose mood music around their domestic form but it was sandwiched by back-to-back league victories over Dundalk and Waterford, the first time Stephen Bradley's men have racked up consecutive league wins since April.
While the gap to the leaders remains vast, a run of wins for Shamrock Rovers could have Shelbourne looking over their shoulders, especially after Damien Duff's men lost 2-1 at Sligo Rovers on Saturday night.
Like the champions, basement side Drogheda have had a slight upturn in league form in recent weeks.
A 2-0 win at home to Waterford ended a run of 10 league games without a win and it was followed up by a decent 2-2 draw at home to Bohemians.
Add in a 2-1 FAI Cup victory over rivals Dundalk, and the mood appears brighter for Kevin Doherty anhd his side.
The recent loan signing of Douglas James-Taylor has provided Frantz Pierrot with what seems like an ideal strike partner, and Rovers boss Bradley is among those who have been impressed by the duo,
"Their two lads up top are very good," he said ahead of the game. 'I went to watch them two weeks ago against Waterford and the two lads caused them real problems, they're a real handful.
"Then they’ve the likes of Ryan Brennan and Darragh Markey behind them. Drogheda are very dangerous off set plays, so we know where they’re strong, but we also know where we can hurt them.
"It’s up to us to take our form from Thursday night into tomorrow as we did last week against Waterford."
Earlier this week, Bradley welcomed striker Marc McNulty into his ranks, and he expects a debut for the Scotland international on Sunday night in Tallaght, but Johnny Kenny and Darragh Burns are both doubts.
"Johnny is doing well, his symptoms feel good and he wants to play," said Bradley.
"But his scans are telling us we need to be cautious because of the type it is and the area it is. It can be a matter of couple of weeks or a few months.
"We need to be careful as Darragh Burns had something similar, and we tried to go too early with Darragh and that ended up being a longer one. So, I don't think Johnny will make the second leg against Celje but he’s getting there.
"We just didn’t get Marc’s medical scans in time for Celje away, he needed his ECGs and everything all cleared but our doctor and physio didn’t get them back in time. But he’s clear for tomorrow, so Marc will be involved against Drogheda."
Drogs proved to be a real bogey side for the perennial League of Ireland champions throughout 2022 and 2023, when the Hoops only managed to beat them once in seven league outings before a 5-0 victory in another Sunday night clash at Tallaght last October.
This has been followed up by 4-0 and 2-0 victories for Bradley's men over Doherty's side this season.
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