By Chris O'Brien
June 28 2004

The draw for the Uefa Cup preliminary round has been made. Welsh Premier and Welsh Cup runners-up Total Network Solutions face Swedish outfit Östers IF, whilst Haverfordwest County will take on Hafnarfjördur of Iceland in Europe's second competition.

Wales' two Uefa Cup representatives now know who they will face in the preliminary round of the competition after the draw was made at Uefa headquarters. Welsh Premier and Welsh Cup runners-up Total Network Solutions and third-placed finishers Haverfordwest County both face trips to tough trips in Europe's second competition.

Last season, Total Network Solutions drew a lucrative 'Battle of Britain' tie against Fair Play League qualifiers Manchester City. The mid-Wales outfit went out 8-0 on aggregate but still enjoyed a money spinning two legs against the Premiership side, with the second-leg behind held at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. However, although they have once again been draw against Fair Play qualifiers, two-legs against Swedish outfit Östers IF doesn't quite get the pulses racing in the same manner.

Östers IF play their football in the second flight of the Swedish pyramid, but qualified for the competition via Play League methods. The Swedes are based in the university town of Växjö and have embarked on several European adventures in the past, and they were seen as quite a force during the 1970's. However, the club is now struggling and TNS might fancy their chances as the Welsh Premier's only professional side. The first leg will take place in Scandinavia, on July 15th at the Värendsvallen Stadium, with TNS using Wrexham's Racecourse ground as a venue for the second-leg on 29th July.

Haverfordwest County face Icelandic outfit FH Hafnarfjördur. They improving Welsh side will face a tough test against the experienced side, who have lost only 1 game from their opening 7 league fixtures as I write, and will be hoping to life the Finnish league title at the end of the season.

Amazingly, this will be Hafnarfjördur's fourth entry into the Uefa Cup and they have faced British opposition every year. In 1990, Dundee United knocked them out, Northern Irish side Linfield beat them over two-legs in 1994 and another Ulster side Glenavon beat them the following season. Possibly the clubs most significant achievement was earning a 2-2 draw with Premier Liga outfit Villareal in the 2002 Intertoto Cup. The Bluebirds will play their home leg at Cardiff City's Ninian Park ground on Thursday 15th July and will make the trip to Iceland exactly two weeks later.

The complete draw for the preliminary qualifying round of the Uefa Cup is as follows:
FK Sileks v NK Maribor
NK Primorje v Marsaxlokk FC
NK Željeznicar v S.S. Pennarossa
KS Dinamo Tirana v FC Otelul Galati
FK Modrica v FC Santa Coloma
AC Omonia v FK Sloga Jugomagnat
FK Partizani v Birkirkara FC
FC Illychivets Mariupil v FC Banants
FK Shamkir v FC Tbilisi
FC BATE Borisov v FC Dinamo Tbilisi
FC Shirak v FC Tiraspol
FC Nistru Otaci v FC Shakhtyor Soligorsk
FC MIKA v Budapest Honvéd FC
FK Dukla Banská Bystrica v FK Karabakh
FC Levadia Tallinn v Bohemian FC
Haverfordwest County AFC v FH Hafnarfjördur
Östers IF v Total Network Solutions FC
Portadown FC v FK Žalgiris Vilnius
B68 Toftir v FK Ventspils
FC Haka v FC Etzella Ettelbrück
FK Ekranas v F91 Dudelange
FC Vaduz v Longford Town FC
B36 Tórshavn v FHK Liepajas Metalurgs
AC Allianssi v Glentoran FC
ÍA Akranes v FC TVMK Tallinn