All you need to know about the Irish Cup final

3 min read
All you need to know about the Irish Cup final - Image 1
All you need to know about the Irish Cup final - Image 2
All you need to know about the Irish Cup final - Image 3
All you need to know about the Irish Cup final - Image 4

All you need to know about the Irish Cup final

BBC Sport NI looks at all you need to know ahead of Saturday's Irish Cup final between Coleraine and holders Dungannon Swifts at Windsor Park.

All you need to know about the Irish Cup final

BBC Sport NI looks at all you need to know ahead of Saturday's Irish Cup final between Coleraine and holders Dungannon Swifts at Windsor Park.

Article image
Article image
Article image

The biggest day in the football calendar in Northern Ireland is almost upon us as Coleraine prepare to face holders Dungannon Swifts in the Irish Cup final at Windsor Park on Saturday.

The Bannsiders are looking to win the trophy for the first time since 2018 after a strong end to the domestic campaign helped them to finish second in the table.

The Swifts, meanwhile, are aiming to retain the trophy they won for the first time in their history in last year's dramatic final.

It promises to be an intriguing encounter and ahead of the big day, BBC Sport NI looks at everything you need to know about the final.

The Irish Cup final kicks off at 14:30 BST at Windsor Park and will be played to conclusion with extra time and penalties a possibility.

The game will be live on BBC Two NI, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport NI website.

Stephen Watson will be joined in studio by Linfield boss David Healy, recently appointed Portadown manager David Jeffrey and Cliftonville boss Jim Magilton.

Thomas Kane will be on commentary alongside Limavady United midfield Philip Lowry, who won the Irish Cup six times during spells with Linfield and Crusaders.

Nicola McCarthy will be gathering reaction pitch side.

You can also listen to the game on BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Sounds.

Eric White will be in studio with Loughgall boss Darren Murphy and Colin Coates, who captained Crusaders to two Irish Cup victories.

Joel Taggart will be joined on commentary by Larne boss Gary Haveron and Liam Beckett, who won the Irish Cup as a player with Coleraine.

You can also follow live text commentary with in play-clips on the website with a report, highlights and reaction to follow after the final whistle.

Dungannon began their defence of the Irish Cup with a routine 3-0 victory over Championship side Ards at Stangmore Park, courtesy of first-half goals from Sean McAllister, Junior and Tiernan Kelly.

Rodney McAree's side then came from behind in the sixth round to beat Portadown 2-1 with McAllister on the scoresheet again and Andrew Mitchell netting the winner.

Steven Scott, Cahal McGinty and Kobei Moore scored to help the Swifts see off H&W Welders 3-0 to reach the last four.

In a repeat of the 2025 decider, Dungannon beat Cliftonville 4-1 on penalties to reach the final again, with goalkeeper Declan Dunne saving two spot kicks in the shootout.

Coleraine began their Irish Cup campaign with a thumping 4-0 win over 10-man Crusaders at the Showgrounds in January.

After Brendan Hamilton was sent off for the Crues, Mark Connolly, Will Patching, James Akitunde and Joel Cooper all netted to secure a comfortable passage to the sixth round.

Ruaidhri Higgins' men then required extra time to see off Carrick Rangers 4-1 at Taylors Avenue, with Matthew Shevlin coming off the bench to score a hat-trick to help them through.

Like this article?

Order custom jerseys for your team with free design

Related Topics

Related News

Back to All News