Nomads look for early goal in Belarus

ANDY Morrison is refusing to give up hope of progressing further in the UEFA Europa League as his Connah’s Quay Nomads side prepare to overturn their first-leg defeat to Shakhtyor Soligorsk tonight (6pm).

JD Welsh Cup winners Connah’s Quay fell to a 3-1 defeat to their Belarussian counterparts last week at Rhyl’s Belle Vue, but boss Morrison believes his side can turn things around.

“We were disappointed after the first leg because 3-1 to them isn’t a fair reflection of the game in my opinion,” explained Morrison.

“But this is European football. They were very efficient, very disciplined, very organised, very hard to beat, tough to break down – we’ve watched them plenty of times and knew what to expect, but they were very effective.

“But we believe we can do it. We’re not daft, we know the challenge ahead, but if we can get an early goal and ask questions of them throughout the second leg I’ve seen enough to know that we can win the game out there, if not the tie then certainly the game.”

Connah’s Quay had plenty of opportunities to find the net in the first leg but found Soligorsk goalkeeper Andrei Klimovich in good form. They finally scored in the dying minutes with a Callum Morris penalty.

“It wasn’t our night, and it is hard to take, but Callum’s goal puts a fairer reflection on the game – if we’d have left at 1-1 after the first leg, we probably would have still been disappointed,” Morrison added.

“Callum’s goal is absolutely the least we deserved.

“We completely pinned them in second half and dominated them, but we didn’t have enough shots, not show enough guile in good positions and we tended to just go one-dimensional, but we’ll work on that and be ready.”

Polish side Lech Poznan or Gandzasar Kapan, of Armenia, will await the winners.

Should Connah’s Quay make it through they will join JD Welsh Premier League champions The New Saints in the second qualifying round following their narrow 5-4 aggregate defeat to KF Shkendija in Champions League qualifying.

After a 5-0 thrashing in the first leg, not much was expected from TNS at Park Hall but Scott Ruscoe’s men reacted perfectly to record a 4-0 victory.

Dean Ebbe, Danny Redmond and Ben Cabango all found the net before the break to give TNS belief.

Kurtis Byrne added a fourth late on, but there was no time for TNS to grab the fifth that would have forced the game into extra time.

Ruscoe’s men will now play Gibraltan champions Lincoln Red Imps on July 26 and August 2, with the first leg at home.