UEFA Cup: Shelbourne go down 1-0 in Slovenia

Pat Fenlon's Shelbourne suffered a 1-0 defeat in cloudy Slovenia tonight, falling behind with seventeen minutes remaining to a headed goal from Nedim Jusufbegovic.

A heavy rain storm in the afternoon saw the match temperature plummet to 20 degrees with 200 Shelbourne supporters amongst the 3000 attendance.

Jim Crawford hit the Olimpija bar after only eight minutes, Shelbourne’s best scoring chance of five in the opening half. Midfielder Stuart Byrne was taken off midway through the half following a knock to the head, with Wesley Hoolahan the replacement. Jason Byrne, the Dublin club's lone striker in a 4-5-1 formation had two chances, as Steve Williams kept the gam scoreless with one brilliant save after the half hour mark.

The second half saw Ljubljana command possession for a 15 minute spell. Shelbourne eventually fell to the intense pressure on 73 minutes when Jusufbegovic nodded home, unmarked at the back post. Olimpija pressed for a second with the eircom League leaders holding off for a surmountable 1-0 result. The second leg takes place in Tolka Park on the 28th August.