Tallaght Time: Shamrock Rovers, 2009-2012

Tallaght Time tells the remarkable story of Shamrock Rovers’ time in Tallaght since the club moved to the venue in 2009. When Shamrock Rovers controversially left Milltown in 1987, it started a 22-year stadium odyssey for Ireland’s most successful football club. The stadium project, first conceived in 1997, looked doomed after a series of planning problems, high court cases and financial issues, with the club coming extremely close to going out of business in 2005. A group of fans subsequently took over the club, and put structures in place that saw the club eventually play the first game in the new stadium in 2009. The nightmare of the decade long journey to Tallaght was soon forgotten by Rovers fans whose dreams could not have foreseen the success that would come in their new home. Told through the words of those involved in Shamrock Rovers, including managers, players, club officials and fans, Tallaght Time relives the many magical nights that the club has had since opening night of the new stadium. Such memorable moments include Cristiano Ronaldo making his debut in a Real Madrid shirt in Tallaght following his world record move from Manchester United; the Hoops taking on Alessandro Del Piero and his Juventus team in 2010; and Rovers manager Michael O'Neill bringing major silverware back to the club for the first time since 1994 with back-to-back league titles in 2010 and 2011. The book also charts Rovers’ remarkable European campaign in 2011 when they became the first Irish team to qualify for the group stages of a major European competition, after a never-to-be-forgotten win over Partizan Belgrade in Serbia.