Penalty heartbreak for Shamrock Rovers who bow out of Europe

Shamrock Rovers suffered a heart-breaking end to their UEFA Conference League adventure as they were beaten by Molde following a penalty shoot-out at Tallaght Stadium.

The match finished 1-0 to the visitors to bring the aggregate score to 1-1, resulting in the tie going to extra time at the packed Dublin venue.

But Rovers would bow out ahead of the last 16 following a 5-4 penalty defeat with Aaron Greene's missed penalty effectively sending Molde through.

Rovers’ first leg advantage had lasted less than ten minutes as the visitors struck early through Magnus Wolff Eikrem to restore parity in the two-legged encounter.

Both sides enjoyed periods of dominance throughout the 90 minutes but it was Rovers who were pushing to win the game in regulation maintaining real pressure on the visitors’ goal throughout the final 30 minutes.

But the breakthrough would not arrive and the game was sent to extra time with Molde reduced to ten men for the 30-minute period, before the shoot-out would end the epic Rovers European escapade.

Rovers had come into the game looking to bring the confidence of last week's win with them and they started with real composure, working the ball well down the right with Danny Grant, Graham Burke and Matt Healy linking well.

Molde were happy to sit in for those opening exchanges, starting with a very compact formation with two deep midfielders guarding the flat back four.

Rovers maintained the pressure without threatening, before Molde shocked the hosts with their first real foray forward.

And it was a gift of a goal, as Rovers were caught out by a high ball aimed at Fredrik Gulbrandsen that was somehow allowed to bounce, causing havoc between goalkeeper and defender.

Ed McGinty managed to make contact, however, it