BELFAST — Dungannon Swifts will face Cliftonville at Windsor Park in Belfast in the Irish Cup semi-final on Friday in a repeat of last year's final. Dungannon defeated Cliftonville on penalties in that final to claim the Irish Cup for the first time in 2025, and the defending champions now return to the same stage of the competition.

The semi-final brings together two sides separated by a single point in the Irish Premiership table, with Cliftonville sitting in sixth place, one point behind Dungannon. Under manager Jim Magilton, a former Northern Ireland international, Cliftonville are aiming to reach a third successive Irish Cup final. Cliftonville won the competition in 2024 before falling to Dungannon in the penalty shootout that decided last year's final.

Dungannon manager Rodney McAree said his squad is prepared for a demanding contest. "We are as strong as we can be and we know whoever gets to the final from our semi-final is going to have a real big task in terms of winning the cup this season. There are four really good teams left," McAree said.

McAree spoke about the impact of last season's cup triumph and the motivation it provides heading into Friday's match. "A lot of players and people around the club have really good memories of what we did last season and we want to give ourselves the opportunity of maybe dreaming of that again, but if we don't win this game we don't have that opportunity so full focus goes onto Cliftonville," McAree said.

McAree also reflected on what reaching another final would mean for the club and its supporters. "It would mean everything to have a big day to look forward to, but it's going to be extremely difficult," he said.

Magilton said he respects the reigning cup holders while expressing confidence in his own squad. "We know and respect what Dungannon can bring to the game, they have many, many strengths and we've got to withstand that and we have to come out with the strength our team have," Magilton said.

Should Dungannon progress past Cliftonville on Friday, they would face either Larne or Coleraine in the Irish Cup final. The semi-final will be broadcast live on BBC iPlayer.