PAT'LL DO NICELY

It's Solskjaer next for the Supersaints

- BY GARRY DOYLE

IT poured with rain and then with goals and the full-time whistle was greeted like a turning point as well as a great European win.

As the clock ticked past 90 minutes St Pat's were staring at a Conference League exit, a demoralising addition to an underwhelming campaign.

Half an hour later, they were preparing for a European tie next Thursday against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's Besiktas following the most dramatic of comebacks.

Guilty of poor defending on either side of halftime, they conceded goals to Ivans Patrikejevs and Mattias Mannilaan to slip 2-1 behind on aggregate.

And that was how it stayed until there was one minute of stoppage time on the clock.

Then Joe Redmond sidefooted a loose ball into the Kalju net to force extra time and they weren't going to be stopped at this point.

Another goal, this one by Jake Mulraney three minutes into the additional 30 minutes, sucked the energy out of the Estonian Cup winners.

The heavens had really opened by this point but all those Baltic clouds had silver linings, the prize money for making it into the third round of the Europa Conference League totalling €1.075m.

Pat's boss Stephen Kenny said: "That game had everything. It had four seasons in 90 minutes. It finished with monsoon rain and puddles.

"But I have to say, we showed great character to come back.