Irish Premiership champions Larne are set to host Serbian giants Red Star Belgrade in the first leg of their Champions League second qualifying round tie this Tuesday at Inver Park. The highly anticipated match draws parallels to a historic encounter 35 years ago when another Irish League club, Portadown, faced the formidable European champions in the precursor to the modern Champions League, the European Cup.
In the autumn of 1991, Portadown, then also domestic league champions, found themselves up against a Red Star Belgrade side fresh from their European Cup triumph. The tie saw Portadown succumb to an 8-0 aggregate defeat. The first leg, notably played in Szeged, Hungary, rather than Belgrade due to the escalating security situation in the former Yugoslavia, ended in a 4-0 loss for the Irish side. The return leg at Shamrock Park mirrored the scoreline.
Alfie Stewart, a central defender for Portadown at the time, vividly recalled the moment he discovered their opponents. Speaking to BBC Sport NI, Stewart described the era's method of getting news: "Back in the day the only way of finding out who you were playing in the draw was to switch on to Ceefax and that was how I found out." He added, "I almost fainted when I found out it was Red Star Belgrade, the European champions, but you quickly switch into excited mode as it's a chance in a million."
Stewart, who had previous European experience with Glentoran, recounted the atmosphere of the away leg in Hungary. Despite the match being played across the border, a significant number of Serbian supporters created a "very loud and very hostile" environment. He acknowledged the challenge of facing world-class athletes: "When you stand beside these guys and they're 6'3'' or 6'4'', you were facing supreme athletes with sheer power and pace and it was a challenge." He specifically mentioned Sinisa Mihajlovic, who scored two late free-kicks in the first leg, and Darko Pancev, the 1991 European Golden Boot winner, who found the net in the second leg at Shamrock Park.
Despite the comprehensive defeat, Stewart expressed pride in Portadown's performance, particularly the 4-0 loss in the first leg against what he considered the best team in Europe at the time. He reflected on the significance of the home leg: "There was great excitement. It was a tremendous night for the fans, a tremendous reward for their support. To have the European champions playing at Shamrock Park it is something that will never happen again, probably at any Irish League ground." Larne will now aim to write their own chapter against the decorated Serbian club.