Where were you?
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Last Thursday will go down as the ultimate ‘Where were you?’ moment for League of Ireland supporters.
Admittedly, keeping up to date with the goings-on in Belgrade from a blustery, wet pitch on the northside of Cork city watching a local AUL game from Twitter, I had abandoned all hope when Shamrock Rovers had fallen behind.
So close, but not close enough, I thought.
Two hours later, I was glad to have been wrong. News filtered through that Rovers were making a good showing of it in the second-half and there was a chance of them grabbing a goal back.
And just after I arrived in home, tuning into the game online through a dodgy satellite link – there’s something romantic and old-school about watching football with a dodgy picture – Pat Sullivan struck the greatest goal of his career.
If that effort was scored by a Barcelona player, then we would still be hearing about it well into the winter.
We all know what followed in extra-time and right through to Friday afternoon's draw, there was palpable excitement from not only Rovers fans, but the majority of League of Ireland fans.
Of course, those who pay no attention to football on their doorstep every Friday night were full of it all in offices around the country come Friday morning.
Clips of Sullivan’s goal were being shown on computer screens around the country and I'll admit it was a bit annoying to hear people going on about 'Twiggy' and 'Danny' Murray like they were long lost friends.
Still, it is impossible to deny the Hoops all the attention they will receive over the next few months.
The worry for other sides in the league now however, is that, if the money is pumped into the club properly (and I have no doubt they will invest wisely) then Rovers could go onto dominate the league like Rosenborg did in Norway throughout the 90s.
The Troillongan won every Norwegian title from 1992 to 2004 and an injection of over €1m into the Hoops could see them dominate exactly like Rosenborg.
Indeed, that is fundamentally one of the big problems with the Champions League and Europa League - those who have success in European football just keep getting richer, putting a bigger wedge between themselves and the domestic sides.
For the rest of the clubs in the country, you would hope a major divide isn't opened up, but then again it would be impossible not to wish Rovers well and congratulate them on their achievement.
Admittedly, keeping up to date with the goings-on in Belgrade from a blustery, wet pitch on the northside of Cork city watching a local AUL game from Twitter, I had abandoned all hope when Shamrock Rovers had fallen behind.
So close, but not close enough, I thought.
Two hours later, I was glad to have been wrong. News filtered through that Rovers were making a good showing of it in the second-half and there was a chance of them grabbing a goal back.
And just after I arrived in home, tuning into the game online through a dodgy satellite link – there’s something romantic and old-school about watching football with a dodgy picture – Pat Sullivan struck the greatest goal of his career.
If that effort was scored by a Barcelona player, then we would still be hearing about it well into the winter.
We all know what followed in extra-time and right through to Friday afternoon's draw, there was palpable excitement from not only Rovers fans, but the majority of League of Ireland fans.
Of course, those who pay no attention to football on their doorstep every Friday night were full of it all in offices around the country come Friday morning.
Clips of Sullivan’s goal were being shown on computer screens around the country and I'll admit it was a bit annoying to hear people going on about 'Twiggy' and 'Danny' Murray like they were long lost friends.
Still, it is impossible to deny the Hoops all the attention they will receive over the next few months.
The worry for other sides in the league now however, is that, if the money is pumped into the club properly (and I have no doubt they will invest wisely) then Rovers could go onto dominate the league like Rosenborg did in Norway throughout the 90s.
The Troillongan won every Norwegian title from 1992 to 2004 and an injection of over €1m into the Hoops could see them dominate exactly like Rosenborg.
Indeed, that is fundamentally one of the big problems with the Champions League and Europa League - those who have success in European football just keep getting richer, putting a bigger wedge between themselves and the domestic sides.
For the rest of the clubs in the country, you would hope a major divide isn't opened up, but then again it would be impossible not to wish Rovers well and congratulate them on their achievement.
About Alan Smith
Alan Smith works as a sub-editor for the Guardian newspaper in London. Originally from Cork, he freelances for several other newspapers and websites. Follow him on twitter @alansmith90. View Full Profile