Liam Buckley's Euro vision motivating Sligo Rovers in FAI Cup

Buckley performed a Houdini-like escape when lifting his team off the bottom of the table with 14 games remaining to clinch fourth spot on the final day of the season, a turnaround that has given the club an unlikely outside chance of Europa League qualification for the first time since 2014.

Indeed, an FAI Cup triumph for Derry City or Athlone are now the only scenarios which would deprive Sligo of a place in European competition for 2021.

Should Sligo, Dundalk or Shamrock Rovers win the cup at the Aviva Stadium on December 6th then Buckley will have accomplished his pre-season mission.

There’s much more on the line than silverware according to the Bit O’Red boss who has described tomorrow’s quarter-final clash with Derry City at the Showgrounds as a ‘do or die’ affair.

“The cup is independent,” he said. “Honest to God, if you can go and win it, it’s a proper day out for the team, for the club for everybody. It’s so important as well as it guarantees a European spot but apart from that it’s just the occasion, it’s definitely worth winning that’s for sure.

“The league is the priority at the start of the season. Don’t get me wrong, the cup is also there to be won, but from the league perspective it qualifies you for Europe so that would’ve been my objective here, to get Europe as soon as possible because it’s important with the revenue you get through winning games.

“And you can see what it’s done for Dundalk and Shamrock Rovers. They got the pick of the league, picking players from all over the place and they can pick the best players wherever they can afford them.

“If you do make Europe it gives you some sort of opportunity to compete with them. That said, at the end of those first four or five games we were still only nine points behind a spot in Europe and I had my eye on that all the time.

“I was hoping that fourth spot might get it (Europe) because I knew Bohemians are obviously putting money into it. Shamrock Rovers, Dundalk, St Pat’s, it was going to be difficult,

“We were still only nine points off the pace, I was disappointed it was put down to 14 games and to be honest with you I said it was 14 games to try and get Europe.

“We pulled out a few results and enough to get fourth. This year it might not be good enough but at this moment in time, that would’ve been my objective to try and get fourth and see where we go from there.”

Buckley has a great affinity with the FAI Cup having won it twice as a manager with Sporting Fingal in 2009 and with St Patrick’s Athletic in the 2014 final against Derry City.

Five times FAI Cup winners, Sligo, find themselves just three games away from lifting the trophy and Buckley believes there’s no reason they can’t go all the way.

“Our season hinges on it,” he said. “The following day you’re finished should you lose. There are three games and someone is going to win the cup, so why can’t it be us?

“As I said to our guys, it’s great to be fourth in the table and it was a really great finish to the season but realistically, memories are built on winning cups and winning leagues, getting into Europe and playing games.

“With all the clubs I’ve played with, abroad and at home, what I do remember are the occasions. I remember cup finals. I remember losing to UCD going back (while playing for Shamrock Rovers in 1984).

“It’s about occasions. From a football perspective I want our lads to grasp it as best they can and see what happens from there.

“The cup is special, definitely. As I said to the boys after the Dundalk game, ‘We’re not finished yet, we’ve got to make sure we get a result against Derry.’

“It will be difficult, I know. It’s 90 minutes, extra-time, penalties, I don’t know what way it’s going to go. Should you get to the final, these are occasions. When you look back on your career, when you look back at moments when I won stuff here, there and wherever, you do remember those occasions - the big occasions.

“I’d love this group to somehow get to the final this year and you never know what can happen. We had Sporting Fingal, ironically against Sligo Rovers a few years back and we weren’t favourites by any stretch but nonetheless, you can have a bit of luck on the day and, please God, we get that against Derry.”

Buckley has enjoyed the upper hand over his opposite number, Declan Devine this season, winning twice in the league campaign. However, the Sligo supremo isn’t taking anything for granted and reckons Derry have been ‘unfortunate’ in their league campaign.

“The game there and down here, there wasn’t much in it, albeit we won both games, but that said it won’t come into my consideration.

“You’d like to think that maybe a little bit of momentum from our end might be helpful but having been there and done that, let me tell you, it’s do or die.

“Derry are coming down here and their season finishes the following day and that’s it. Our season finishes the following day if we lose. So I’ve no doubt they will be up for it.

“It’ll be tight. There wasn’t a lot in both matches we played this season. At times we kept good possession and all that but in saying that, there wasn’t a lot in those games. So it’ll be do or die.

“I just hope from our end, I’ll be regrouping to prepare for a semi-final,” he concluded.