Paul Fennessy

SHAMROCK ROVERS star Jack Byrne says he is “just happy to be back on the pitch” after a difficult time with injuries.

It has been a sub-par season for the player and club alike — the Hoops sit fifth in the Premier Division table with 13 games to play.

Consequently, the prospect of a fifth successive league title looks remote — the reigning champions are 13 points off leaders Shelbourne, albeit with a game in hand.

However, a long European run — akin to their 2022 season when they made the Conference League group stage — would be a welcome respite from their domestic troubles.

One of the reasons for their indifferent form has been the regular absence of Byrne — the playmaker has featured in just nine of their 23 league games this season.

The 28-year-old also had to sit out their 2-0 first-leg loss at home to Sparta Prague — a game he missed through suspension after being sent off in their previous tie against Vikingur Reykjavik.

While disappointed not to feature, Byrne says he found it difficult to build up fitness, after recovering from injury, amid an intense run of games.

“It has been good the last three weeks where I could actually train a little bit,” he told reporters ahead of the game. “But look, it’s never ideal missing pre-season and trying to get up to speed during the season.” 

Byrne has missed some key European fixtures for Rovers through injury in past seasons but will be hoping to peak at the optimal moment this time.

“I understand that it’s not going to happen overnight with my performances,” he said. “I’ve been out for a while. I’m happy to be on the pitch at the moment. It’s great to be involved in these games, you want to be giving the best account of yourself, you don’t want to be just out there.”

Byrne lists off some of the most impressive sides the Hoops have faced in Europe — AC Milan, Ferencvaros, Ludogorets — and believes tomorrow’s opponents Sparta Prague are of a similar calibre.

The midfielder also suggests some Irish football fans tend to underestimate the European opposition they came up against.

“People from Ireland are watching Irish football all the time, they might not be watching the Scandinavian countries or whoever it may be and don’t realise how difficult the game could be. But when we’re watching the clips and videos, you soon find out.

“It can be difficult [to adapt to Europe] but you could say that about Sparta and their league if they’re not playing against the likes of Liverpool who they get in the group stage [last year]. That’s a problem most teams face when they enter the group stage.

“We want more competition in Ireland, better players and facilities, all of that stuff to push the league but it’s not there at the moment. We know that. We’ve good players and it’s getting better but we need to push because it’s not only for Shamrock Rovers to qualify, it’s for whoever wins the league or finishes second. Why can’t we have two or three teams in it? These are the things we need to do.”

Meanwhile, Stephen Bradley confirmed his side would be without Celtic loanee Johnny Kenny for the Champions League second qualifying round fixture in Prague.

The two-goal hero from the first round against Vikingur misses the game through injury after a scan ruled him out.

Despite that setback, the Hoops manager says he is not giving up hope of a turnaround, which would constitute one of the great results in Irish football history.

‘We had chances [in the first leg] but didn’t take them. They took their chances, which you would expect of that level there. We’ve just got to make sure we get opportunities and we can take them.

“I think we saw in Tallaght with Josh [Honohan's] late chances in the last five minutes, it only takes a second to score. We mustn’t get caught up in that aspect. We know we need to score, we focus on our jobs and we’ll create something at some point.”