St Patrick's Athletic gain confidence in defeat as rebuild looms

St Patrick's Athletic's European campaign came to a commendable end on Wednesday night, as they put in a strong and disciplined performance against Istanbul Basaksehir.

Although they bowed out of the competition, Stephen Kenny and his players can hold their heads high, knowing they gave everything in their pursuit of European group stage football.

The journey to this stage has been nothing short of impressive, and the experience gained will undoubtedly fuel the club's ambitions going forward.

Wednesday night's match in Istanbul was always going to be a tough ask for St Pat's, facing a side with vast European experience and quality.

However, the Inchicore club more than held their own for large parts of the game.

In the first half, they carved out a couple of notable chances, with Mason Melia and Kian Leavy both coming close to finding the net.

The pace and directness of Zach Elbouzedi troubled the Turkish side over the two legs.

His ability to get in behind the Basaksehir defence caused them significant problems, and he was unlucky not to capitalise on a pull-back in the final third, which could have changed the complexion of the game.

Despite the eventual 2-0 loss on the night, St Pat's can be proud of their overall performance. They kept a clean sheet until the hour mark, a testament to their concentration and defensive discipline.

Much of this can be attributed to the extra rest and preparation time they received after their Premier Division match against Dundalk was postponed.

The decision, albeit controversial in its timing, proved to be the right one, allowing St Pat's to approach the game with the energy and focus required at this level.

Kenny's side reached this scenario after an unbeaten run of five games in Europe, during