Shelbourne’s visit to the Johan Cruyff Arena in Amsterdam should stand the test of time.By only losing 3-1 away to Ajax, the second leg of this Uefa Conference League third-round qualifier at Tolka Park next Thursday has retained its relevancy.At 3-0, Shels goalkeeper Eddie Beach denied Mika Godts a second goal from the penalty spot. If the Wales under-21 international had not produced a string of sensational saves, the night would have been memorable for all the wrong reasons.Instead, the 500 Shelbourne fans who made the pilgrimage will easily recall the cast of characters on display.It looks like Ajax’s technical director Jordi Cruyff will have to sell Godts to Paris Saint-Germain later this month. On Thursday, the Belgian winger showed how he could fit into Luis Enrique’s Champions League-winning squad.When this trip to Amsterdam is looked back on in years to come, the names of Beach and Godts will be followed by Shelbourne goalscorer Dan Kelly. The 30-year-old cousin of Republic of Ireland international Abbie Larkin had stints at Bray Wanderers, Bohemians, Dundalk and Derry City before signing for Shels last year.“Don’t think I’ll ever get that sort of goal in a stadium like that again,” Kelly admitted. “Where we were coming from and who we were playing against, with 55,000 [fans], with my dad, my bro and my cousin up in the crowd, it is something that will definitely live with me forever.”With Shelbourne centre forwards John Martin, Seán Boyd and Mipo Odubeko unfit to start, Kelly embraced the impossible task of holding up possession while being swarmed by Daley Blind and other Dutch defenders.After Danish striker Kasper Dolberg made it 3-0, five minutes into the second half, Shels manager John Russell loosened the ultra-cautious approach that had been employed to keep Ajax at bay.A view of Shelbourne fans at the Amsterdam Arena. Photograph: Manuel Blondeau/Inpho The introduction of Scottish winger Ali Coote and Portuguese attacker Rodrigo Freitas stalled the one-way traffic. All of a sudden, Shels had two “out balls” to aim at instead of hoofing clearances for Blind to clean up.As time ticked down, Shels skipper Paddy Barrett spied Coote’s onside run, hitting his chest with an ambitious diagonal ball. After Maarten Paes parried Coote’s shot, Kelly finished the rebound.“I was thinking: I need to try and keep it low and get a good connection on it and keep it bottom right. Thankfully I hit it well.“I think the pitch helps. Obviously, if it’s on a different pitch or it’s on an astro, it probably bobbles up and I miss, but the pitch out there is incredible.”The second leg at Tolka Park will feel like time travel for the Ajax players. The ball will bobble up.At full-time, Kelly swapped shirts with the German midfielder Julian Brandt. “I’m happy with that. I thought he was going to sign for Leeds, I’m obviously a Leeds fan, so I was going to say it but I’ll save that conversation for next week.“They’re top tier,” he added. “[Godts] is unbelievable. He could be up there with one of the best I’ve played against. They’ve some unbelievable players.“It’s incredible, you’re obviously waiting for their jerseys after. You don’t want to seem to be too nice because you have to play them next week. But listen, we’re a small team from Ireland so you never get a chance to play in these big competitions on these big stages. Thankfully, we’ve done ourselves proud.”