'We underestimate teams when we play them in Europe as a nation' - Conan Byrne on the LOI's continental qualifiers

Last week's European qualifier first legs were a mixed bag for the League of Ireland sides.

Shamrock Rovers dug out the type of gritty performance that former Republic of Ireland winger Keith Treacy had advocated for in their Champions League first round qualifier against Iceland's Vikingur and with the tie poised at 0-0, it's all to play for in Tallaght in the second leg tonight.

Shelbourne, meanwhile, marked an emotional return to the continental stage after almost two decades with a narrow 2-1 victory over St Joseph's that Damien Duff's side will take to Gibraltar for Thursday's Conference League return leg.

It was a different story for Derry City in the same competition on the southern tip of the Iberian peninsula as they suffered the type of 2-0 defeat to Gibraltarian side Bruno's Magpies that manager Ruaidhri Higgins described repeatedly as "unacceptable".

The Candystripes are now under pressure to turn that deficit on its head in Thursday's second leg at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium.

Derry City's experience in Gibraltar and the general difficulty LOI sides endure in Champions League, Europa League or Conference League qualifying did not overly surprise former St Patrick's Athletic and Shelbourne midfielder Conan Byrne as he outlined the trends on this week's RTÉ Soccer Podcast.

"The insane thing is, I was looking back over some stats over the last number of years, we've a 25% win rate in Europe over the last three or four years," he said.

Listen to the RTÉ Soccer podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

We need your consent to load this YouTube content We use YouTube to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their