A 0-0 draw was enough for Shamrock Rovers to progress past FC Flora of Estonia on Tuesday.
Rovers will now face FC Copenhagen in the third round of qualifying for the Champions League after Chris Turner’s goal in the first leg in Tallaght saw them through.
Rovers are now guaranteed at least four more games in Europe. If they beat Copenhagen over two legs they progress to the final round of Champions League qualifying while defeat will drop them into the final round of Europa League qualifying.
A large contingent of Hoops fans made the long trek to Tallinn and at times it felt more like a home tie for the Irish champions.
The Estonian champions were very poor, failing to land a single shot on target over the 90 minutes, leaving Alan Mannus’ last game for Rovers as one of the easiest in his two-year tenure.
Rovers were far from fluid either, though Gary Twigg did a superb job in holding up possession and slowing the game down, while Dean Kelly was lively throughout.
Ken Oman controlled matters through the middle for Michael O’Neill’s side but it was Enda Stevens who created the game’s best chance.
After 80 minutes a Stevens cross found Kelly’s head and he forced a brilliant save from Flora keeper Stanislav Pedok.
An injury-time free offered Tallinn a lifeline but Valeri Minkenen wasted the effort, putting it over and Rovers could relax minutes later.
With a potential windfall in the region of €500,000 now on its way to Tallaght, it was a great night’s work by Shamrock Rovers.