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All you need to know about the Irish Cup finalImage source, InphoImage caption, Dungannon Swifts won the Irish Cup for the first time in their history in 2025ByLauren McCannBBC Sport NI JournalistPublished18 minutes agoComments
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.
Image source, InphoDunne was the shootout hero again for Dungannon Swifts against Cliftonville
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.
Cooper and Shevlin were on target in a 2-0 quarter-final victory over Championship Limavady and the duo both also scored in the extra time 2-1 win against Larne in the last four at Windsor Park.
Image source, PacemakerColeraine won three of the four league meetings between the sides this season
Coleraine are the team in form heading into the decider with the Bannsiders currently on a nine-game unbeaten run in all competitions.
Higgins’ side won all five games in the split, including a thumping final day 6-2 win over Glentoran which secured second place and European football for the club for the first time since 2022.
The Bannsiders have won three of the four league meetings with the Swifts this season, including a 2-1 victory at Stangmore Park when the two sides last met in March.
Their unbeaten run started after their 3-1 loss against McAree’s side in February.
Dungannon, contrastingly, endured a difficult end to their league campaign, finishing sixth without winning a game in the split.
With an eye already on the Irish Cup final, McAree rotated his side in the last few league games, with a youthful team falling to a 8-0 final day defeat to champions Larne at Inver Park.
Image source, InphoCooper and Shevlin both scored in the quarter-final and semi-final victories to help Coleraine reach the decider
Coleraine are back in an Irish Cup final for the first time in seven years and are aiming to end what has proved to be a good first season under Higgins on a high.
While they missed out on the league title to Larne, the Bannsiders managed to pip Glentoran to second place and secure European football for next season.
They also have a good chance to claim some silverware and head into this final as favourites given they look to have hit form at the right time.
In Cooper (25 goals in all competitions) and Shevlin (24 goals in all competitions) Coleraine have two ace marksmen that have been integral in this cup run and will look to finish the job on Saturday.
With the likes of Ben Wylie and Will Patching also finding form and goals in recent weeks, Coleraine have quality all over the pitch and a deep squad that could prove to be key if the game goes the distance.
As mentioned, Coleraine last lifted the trophy in 2018 thanks to a 3-1 win over Cliftonville with Eoin Bradley’s trophy-clinching goal setting off wild scenes of celebration including then manager Oran Kearney haring off down the Windsor Park touchline for a massive pile-on.
Bannsiders fans will hope for similar scenes in south Belfast on Saturday afternoon.
Dungannon Swifts will aim to follow the likes of Lisburn Distillery, Linfield, Cliftonville, Glentoran, Belfast Celtic and Crusaders in winning back-to-back Irish Cups.
They scaled new heights last year when they lifted the trophy for the very first time in dramatic fashion and will relish being the underdogs going into another final.
The Swifts erased their penalty shootout agony from 2007’s showpiece final against Linfield as they overcame Cliftonville on spot kicks to seal a famous victory for the County Tyrone side.
McAree’s side showed their mettle to keep going despite Shea Kearney cancelling out John McGovern’s first-half header and having to play for over an hour with 10 men after Steven Scott’s dismissal.
Dunne was the hero in the shootout, thwarting Luke Conlan with Kearney also missing as Gael Bigirimana, Leo Alves, Adam Glenny and Brandon Bermingham all scoring to help the Swifts to a dramatic first win.
It’s been an inconsistent league season for the Swifts, but they have remained consistent in the cup and will hope their recent big game experience and McAree’s ability to squeeze everything out of his small squad will count for them on Saturday
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