After totally out-playing Camarthen Town in the first leg and carrying a 2-0 lead into the game the FAI cup winners appeared to be hot favourites to win the tie.
Seeds of doubt may have been sown when Camarthen went ahead after 15 minutes but things got quickly back on track five minutes later when Andy Myler scored an away goal from the penalty spot to equalise on the night and give Longford a healthy 3-1 aggregate lead which they held going into the break.
However, from the restart things started to go horribly wrong for the Eircom league side. Camarthen immediately piled on the pressure and were rewarded with a most bizarre goal after four minutes when a cross into the Longford area, bounced twice and dribbled past O’Brien into the net.
The Welsh sides spirits were lifted and their continued pressure forced Longford to concede a penalty in the 65th minute which was converted for their third goal of the night and ten minutes later they took the lead in the tie with a fourth goal scored by man of the match Thomas.
Stunned, the Eircom side pushed forward in a desperate attempt to get back into the tie but inevitably left themselves open at the back and conceded a fifth when goalkeeper O’Brien was dispossessed inside his own half by Camarthen substitute Cotterall who went unchallenged to roll the ball home to complete a miserable night for Longford and leave their European dream in tatters.
CARMARTHEN - Pennock; Hardy, Lloyd, Giles, Carter; Jones,Aherne-Evans, Kennedy, Smothers (Cotterall 59); Dodds, Thomas (Walters 84) .
LONGFORD - O'Brien; Paisley, O'Connor, Ferguson, Dillon; Martin,Fitzgerald (Murphy 68), Byrne, Kirby; Keegan, Myler (Baker 68).