Promising starts for Tobyl and Slovan .

Tobyl's Nurbol Zhumaskaliev (left) scored the opening goal against Zestaponi (©uefa.com)

FC Tobyl and SK Slovan Bratislava are among the sides happiest with their UEFA Intertoto Cup first round first leg results while Cliftonville FC were frustrated by ten-man FC Dinaburg as uefa.com rounds up the action from the opening day.

Cliftonville FC 1-1 FC Dinaburg
Cliftonville FC came from behind to level thanks to a debut goal by Ciaran O'Connor but could not defeat ten-man FC Dinaburg at Solitude. Jurijs Sokolovs put the visitors in front after 20 minutes, finishing off a cross from Zaur Kaziev following a defensive error by Declan O'Hara. O'Connor, a recent signing from Glenavon FC, equalised five minutes before the break when he followed up a rebound after Chris Scannell's shot had been saved. Dinaburg were then reduced to ten men just before the hour when Alexey Kostenko was dismissed after tangling with Barry Johnston but the Latvian outfit held firm.

FK Baku 1-1 FC Dacia Chisinau
An own goal ten minutes from time by Maxim Andranik gave FK Baku a well-earned draw against Dacia Chisinau. The visitors took the early initiative, putting Khalidou Sissoko under constant pressure in Baku’s goal, and the Senegalese goalkeeper was almost beaten five minutes before half-time when Valentin Onila caught him off guard with a long-range header which drifted wide. Onila soon broke the deadlock, though, scoring with a fierce volley before the break. Baku poured forward in the second half but struggled in front of goal, their best chance coming when Dzhamshid Magerramov crashed a shot against the crossbar from distance. Andranik came to their rescue when he turned a right-wing cross past his own goalkeeper and Farid Guliyev could have secured a home victory in the closing stages had his 85th-minute header not flown wide.

Ethnikos Achnas FC 1-0 FK Makedonija Skopje
Cypriot side Ethnikos Achnas FC will take a narrow advantage into the return leg in F.Y.R. Macedonia despite missing a host of chances against Makedonija. Captain Christos Poyiatzis scored the only goal from the penalty spot on seven minutes after goalkeeper Ljupco Kolev had brought down Zoran Stjepanović, although the home side spurned a series of clear chances to put the tie beyond their Macedonian counterparts, who fielded a team consisting mostly of players from their Under-21 national squad. Slovenian forward Patrik Ipavec saw his shot come back off the post midway through the first half whilst there were further misses from Poyiatzis, Panayiotis Engomitis and Damir Suljanović in the second period.

FC Tobyl 3-0 FC Zestaponi
FC Tobyl completed a convincing home win against their Georgian visitors but had to wait until the second half before breaking through. The first period was a cautious affair although Nurbol Zhumaskaliev, Ruslan Baltiev, Ulugbek Bakaev and Sergei Skorykh all threatened for the home side. The visitors' only clear-cut chance came at the start of the second half when Gogi Pipia's grazed the bar but Tobyl soon responded with a goal, Nurbol Zhumaskaliev reacting first to a rebound from a Kairat Nurdauletov set-piece. That goal came on 63 minutes and the second followed two minutes later, Baltiev finishing in style from Zhumaskaliev's corner. Azat Nurgaliev then set up the third, providing a pinpoint cross which Bakaev tapped in.

NK Zagreb 2-1 KS Vllaznia
Zagreb were forced to come from behind to carve out a narrow advantage against their Albanian visitors, who took a third-minute lead when Arlind Nora struck following a corner. The home side drew level from a similar source 13 minutes later, however, Safet Nadarević the scorer, and Zagreb finally turned their dominance into a lead in the 64th mintue as Tomislav Labudović found the net, the game's third goal from a corner. Both sides ended the game with ten men as Franc Ahi of Vllaznia was dismissed in the 73rd minute before the Croatian side lost Krunslav Lovrek to a red card a minute from time.

FC Differdange 03 0-2 SK Slovan Bratislava
Slovan will be confident of reaching the next round after a narrow win at Differdange. Mizoslav Poliacek gave his side a deserved lead on 32 minutes before his replacement Pavol Sedlak doubled the advantage nine minutes after half-time, four minutes after coming on. Differdange, playing at AS Jeunesse Esch’s ground, took the game to their visitors after the break but squandered several chances and now the team from Luxemburg have it all to do in the return leg at the Slovan Stadium.

Hammerby 1-0 KÍ Klaksvík
Hammarby scrambled a scrappy win against KÍ before 1,633 spectators in Sweden. The home side took the lead as early as the third minute with new recruit Charlie Davies scoring his first goal for the club. Those expecting the floodgates to open after the early breakthrough were to be disappointed, however, as the visiting Faroese outfit held out. "Of course it's a disappointment," said Hammarby coach Tony Gustafsson. "We should have scored more goals but it's hard against a side that is only focused on defending."

Sant Julià 2 – 3 FK Slavija Sarajevo
Sant Julià showed great resolve to claw back a two-goal deficit with two goals in as many second-half minutes only to fall foul of Darko Spalević’s late winner. The home side held Slavija at bay during the first half but went behind when Varela put through his own net just before the hour-mark. Buoyed by their lead the visitors scored again three minutes later through Vlastimir Jovanović but the hosts bounced back into contention when Pepe (64) and then Luis (65) surprised their Bosnia-Herzegovnian visitors. With six minutes left on the clock, however, Spalević dented Andorran hopes with a deft strike to take a slender lead into the return leg.

FC Shakhtyor Soligorsk 4-1 FC Ararat
Two goals by Aleksandr Klimenko helped FC Shakhtyor Soligorsk take a major step towards the second round with a comprehensive win against FC Ararat. The hosts took the lead midway through the first half when Aleksandr Yurevich crossed for Aleksei Rios to head in from point-blank range and soon afterwards, Rios almost doubled the lead only to see his goalbound effort scrambled off the line. Shakhtyor's leading scorer Klimenko had four presentable chances to score before the break, only to fall short on each occasion, while Ararat's lone striker Marcos Pizelli made the most of his only chance a minute before half-time, launching on a solo run before cutting in from the right, dribbling past three defenders and equalising from 16 metres. Shakhtyor were more ruthless after the break, though, regaining the lead on 58 minutes through Maksim Gukailo before Klimenko twice scored after fine approach play by Aleksandr Novik and Mikhail Martinovich.

Valur Reykjavik 0-2 Cork City FC
Two away goals in Laugardalsvöllur has put Cork City in the driving seat for the return leg of their first round match against Valur Reykjavik. The visitors took the lead after just five minutes when Colin O'Brien fired in the opening goal from 23 metres out and there were chances for either side in an eventful match as the hosts pressed forward in search of an equaliser. Cork scored the all-important second midway through the second half when Liam Kearney found the net direct from a free-kick while Valur failed to reduce the arrears.