STEPHEN BRADLEY believes Shamrock Rovers belong where no League of Ireland team has previously been as they set out to make more history.
But he has been forced to dig deep into his managerial past to find a similar experience.
The Hoops host Molde at Tallaght Stadium in the Conference League tonight leading 1-0 from the first leg in Norway.
And a date with Cercle Bruges or Legia Warsaw awaits in the last-16 should they progress.
Being in European football beyond Christmas is already uncharted territory for a League of Ireland side.
But bringing the lead back home from a first leg is not.
Though, it has been no regular occurrence in Bradley’s 18 prior two-legged ties as Hoops chief.
Only once has his side brought a lead back to Tallaght — in his first season against Stjarnan back in 2017.
Now, Bradley is sure that attack will be the best form of defence this evening.
He said: “We’ll go to win the game, we are not made to sit back. You have to understand that you’ve to defend at times but we won’t sit back. They are a good team and I don’t think we can afford to sit back.
“If anything, we have to be more aggressive than we were last week.
“We have to take the game to Molde. We know they will have their moments and chances.
“But like we showed in the first leg, we will create chances and dominate games when we are at our levels. That will be our aim.”
Bradley is sure his team can do it as he has never doubted that his Hoops are among peers in this competition and not punching above their weight.
He added: “We haven’t feared many teams that we’ve played in the past. I feel that we genuinely belong here.
“I said in Molde, we’re not here just to play the game and say, ‘Right, we created history’ by doing so.
“We want to go through, we want to be in the last-16. That’s the plan and that’s the idea to keep pushing the club forward. It’s what we’re here to do.
“It will mean a lot for this club, these players and these fans who have been through so much throughout the years.
“And then second of all for the league, it’s a really big step forward for the league.
“It’s so important and shows the path for what hopefully comes after us.
“It’s an important step. Hopefully we can make that step.
“It’s an important step for us as a club, everyone involved and the league as a whole.”
TEAM NEWS
But Rovers are weakened by injuries and suspensions for tonight’s encounter with seven potential starters unavailable.
Last year’s Player of the Year Dylan Watts and defender Dan Cleary are both suspended after picking up three yellow cards in the campaign to date.
Danny Mandroiu has also been ruled out for four weeks with a hamstring issue and misses out alongside Adam Matthews, Jack Byrne, Trevor Clarke and Darragh Nugent.
But Gary O’Neill has been cleared to play after limping out of Sunday’s 1-0 loss to Bohemians before half-time and will likely partner Matt Healy in midfield.
And Bradley confirmed that 16-year-old wonderkid Michael Noonan, who last week became the youngest scorer in Europe since group stages were first introduced in 1991, will start his third game in a week.
Bradley smiled: “If you can’t at 16 . . . there are going to be times when I have to take him out, leave him out and protect him.
“But that mental and physical fatigue hasn’t set in right now.
“He’s still fresh in his mind and body.
“He was a yard away from scoring two goals on Sunday.
“One came off his studs and another was blocked on the line.
“He puts himself in the right position to score goals.
“We just need to look after him and take him out at the right time.”
