Historic tie narrows the Irish divide

By Kenny Archer

Some might argue that the timing of the UEFA Champions League qualifier between the champions of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland could hardly have been worse.

Day of celebration
Yesterday, 24 hours before the first leg of their first qualifying round tie, was the 'Twelfth of July', a traditional day of celebration for Protestant unionists in Northern Ireland but also a time of increased tension between their own and the Roman Catholic nationalist communities. However, Alex McWilliams, secretary of host club Glentoran FC from Belfast, insists the date presents no problem and that the only rivalry with Dublin side Shelbourne FC will be a sporting one, with former European champions FC Steaua Bucuresti lying in wait for the winners.

Low-key build-up
Thankfully, the build-up to this all-Ireland affair has been fairly low-key and the emphasis seems to be on football, not politics. McWilliams said: "We're thinking of nothing else here. We know at this time of year there are certain traditions and parades that take place but that's all in the background.

'All forgotten'
"Come the 13th it will all be forgotten. All we're interested in, and anybody else is interested in, is this match and that's why it's sold out. There's no more room for the home support."

Capacity cut
Glentoran's ground, The Oval, has around 4,500 seats but tonight there will be around 2,500 paying spectators plus about 100 special guests. Glentoran have slightly reduced the capacity for home fans in the main grandstand for safety reasons but other considerations have lessened the crowd even more.

Visiting fans
"I've been told there's 500 people coming from Dublin to support Shelbourne and it's a shame they're going to rattle about in the Railway Stand, which can hold 2,000 people," McWilliams added.

Home support
"Health and safety and the police will not let us use it for anything other than Shelbourne supporters. That's denying 1,500 people the chance to see the game - but the home stand will be full and every one of them will be here for a footballing purpose."

Travel savings
The reduced capacity will cost Glentoran a little in terms of gate receipts, but as McWilliams pointed out: "We're thankful the return leg is only a bus journey away so what we're losing on the gate we're gaining from the fact we don't have a great outlay on travelling expenses. But it's not just about money, it's about entertaining people, people enjoying football, people making new friends."

Away team at home
Indeed, Glentoran have taken an unusual step to make their visitors feel comfortable - they went to visit them yesterday in Dublin for the traditional pre-match function! "Under ordinary circumstances it would have been held here in Belfast, but because of the Twelfth celebrations we're not asking Shelbourne officials to travel up. We're going to meet them down there, we're working together to make each other feel comfortable."

'Building a bond'
Glentoran hope this first meeting of the champions from both sides of Ireland's border in Europe's premier club competition for 21 years, following on from the successful Setanta Cup in which Shelbourne reached the final, will have a lasting and positive effect. "We are building a bond between the clubs that we hope will continue well into the future," McWilliams concluded. "In fact, after the game in Dublin, once we have beaten them, they'll support us when we go on to play Steaua!"