The 2017–18 Irish Cup (known as the Tennent's Irish Cup for sponsorship purposes) was the 138th edition of the

Irish Cup The Irish Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly referred to as the Irish Cup (currently known as the Clearer Water Irish Cup for sponsorship purposes) is the primary Association football, football single elimination, knockout cup compet ...

, the premier knockout cup competition in

Northern Irish The people of Northern Ireland are all people born in Northern Ireland and having, at the time of their birth, at least one parent who is a British Nationality Law, British citizen, an Irish nationality law, Irish citizen or is otherwis ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

since its introduction in 1881. The competition began on 19 August 2017 and concluded with the final at

Windsor Park The National Football Stadium at Windsor Park (officially the Clearer Twist National Stadium at Windsor Park for sponsorship reasons), or the National Football Stadium, also known as Windsor Park is a association football, football stadium in B ...

in May 2018. Linfield are the defending champions, having defeated

Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, No ...

3–0 in the 2017 final. A new system for penalty shoot-outs will be trialled as sanctioned by the

International Football Association Board The International Football Association Board (IFAB) is an international self-regulatory body of association football that is known for determining the Laws of the Game, the regulations for the gameplay of football. It was founded in 1886 in or ...

to test a different sequence of taking penalties. Known as "ABBA", it mirrors the serving sequence in a tennis tie-break i.e. team A takes the first penalty, team B takes the second penalty, team B takes the third penalty, etc.

Format and schedule

All ties level after 90 minutes used extra time to determine the winner, with a penalty shoot-out to follow if necessary. 130 clubs entered this season's competition, an increase of four clubs compared with the 2016–17 total of 126 clubs. 94 regional league clubs from tiers 4–7 in the

Northern Ireland football league system The Northern Ireland football league system is categorised into three levels: senior, intermediate and junior. Clubs attain intermediate status by fulfilling certain criteria (e.g. owning or leasing its own enclosed ground). Senior status requires ...

entered the competition in the first round, 12 of whom received a bye into the Round 2A. ( Strabane Athletic were originally excluded, but were reinstated after the first-round draw had been made, necessitating a further draw for 'Round 2A' between Strabane and the eleven clubs that had received a first-round bye, with one tie drawn and ten further byes.). The 41 first-round winners were joined by winner and the ten byes from Round 2A and the 12 clubs of the

NIFL Premier Intermediate League The NIFL Premier Intermediate League (Known as the Playr-Fit NIFL Premier Intermediate League for sponsorship reasons) is the third level of the Northern Ireland Football League, the national association football league in Northern Ireland, and t ...

in the second round. After two further rounds, with the eight surviving clubs joining the 24 senior

NIFL Premiership The NIFL Premiership, known as the Sports Direct Premiership for sponsorship purposes, and Irish Premiership colloquially, is a professional association football league which operates as the highest division of the Northern Ireland Football L ...

and

NIFL Championship The Northern Ireland Football League Championship (known as the Playr-Fit Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the second level of the Northern Ireland Football League, the national football league in Northern Ireland. Clubs in the Championsh ...

clubs in the fifth round. All ties level after 90 minutes used extra time to determine the winner, with a penalty shoot-out to follow if necessary.

Results

First round

''Matches were played on 19 August 2017''Tennent's Irish Cup 2017/18 – First Round Draw
/ref> * 1st Bangor Old Boys 2–3 Tullyvallen * 18th Newtownabbey Old Boys 3–2 Comber Recreation * Abbey Villa 0–3 Immaculata *

Ardstraw Ardstraw (from (hill or height of the holm or strath)) is a small village, townland and civil parish in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, three miles northwest of Newtownstewart. In the 2001 census, it had a population of 222 people (in 81 hous ...

10–2 Richhill * Ballymacash Rangers 3–4 Shankill United * Ballynahinch United v Rosario YC (''Rosario YC received bye'') * Bangor Amateurs 0–3 Newtowne * Barn United 3–8 Rathfriland Rangers * Bloomfield 1–3 Craigavon City * Bryansburn Rangers 3–1 St. Mary's Youth * Coagh United 6–1 Ballymoney United * Crewe United 2–3 Drumaness Mills * Crumlin Star 9–1

Shorts Shorts are a garment worn over the pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" because they ar ...

* Crumlin United 3–2

Silverwood Silverwood Theme Park is an amusement park located near the city of Athol, Idaho, Athol in northern Idaho, United States, near the town of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, Coeur d'Alene, approximately from Spokane, Washington on U.S. Route 95 in Idaho, US ...

* Derriaghy Cricket Club 3–1 Bourneview Young Men *

Dollingstown Dollingstown is a large village in County Down, Northern Ireland, lying between Lurgan and Magheralin. It is within the Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon district. In the 2011 census it had a population of 2,103 people. Dollingstown is in the to ...

1–3 Maiden City *

Dunloy Dunloy () is a village and townland in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is located north of Ballymena and north-west is Ballymoney. It is located in the civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish of Finvoy, in the former Barony (Ireland), bar ...

3–1 Banbridge Rangers * Dunmurry Rec. 4–0 Dromore Amateurs * Fivemiletown United 1–4

Islandmagee Islandmagee () is a peninsula and civil parish on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland, located between the towns of Larne and Whitehead. It is part of the Mid and East Antrim Borough Council area and is a sparsely populated rur ...

* Glebe Rangers 2–0 Bangor *

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

8–2 Chimney Corner * Killyleagh YC 5–1 Newbuildings United * Laurelvale 6–1 Broomhedge Maghaberry * Lower Maze 1–2 St. Patrick's Young Men * Lurgan Town 3–1 Groomsport * Magherafelt Sky Blues v Colin Valley (''Colin Valley received bye'') * Malachians v Downshire Young Men (''Downshire Young Men received bye'') * Markethill Swifts 2–1 Grove United * Moneyslane 1–4

Sirocco Works Sirocco Works, officially Sirocco Engineering Works, was an engineering firm based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The site is located beside Short Strand, adjacent to Bridge End and River Lagan. It was founded by Samuel Cleland Davidson in 1881 unde ...

* Orangefield Old Boys 3–0 Dunmurry Young Men * Oxford United Stars 4–3

Trojans Trojan or Trojans may refer to: * Of or from the ancient city of Troy * Trojan language, the language of the historical Trojans Arts and entertainment Music * ''Les Troyens'' ('The Trojans'), an opera by Berlioz, premiered part 1863, part 1890 ...

* Portaferry Rovers 3–1 Ballynahinch Olympic * Rathfern Rangers 4–5 Lisburn Rangers * Rosemount Rec 3–1 St. Luke's *

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. Membership Service in th ...

1–2 Dromara Village * Saintfield United 2–4 Tandragee Rovers * Seagoe 1–12 Larne Tech Old Boys * Seapatrick 1–4 Ballynure Old Boys *

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

2–3 Dungiven Celtic * Valley Rangers 5–0 Oxford Sunnyside * Windmill Stars 2–1 St. James' Swifts

Round 2A

Strabane Athletic were originally excluded from the competition, but were reinstated after the first-round draw had been made, necessitating a 'Round 2A' involving Strabane and the eleven clubs that had received first-round byes. One tie drawn was drawn and the following ten teams received further byes: Albert Foundry, Ballywalter Rec., Brantwood, Cookstown Youth,

Desertmartin Desertmartin (;Toner, Gregory: ''Place-Names of Northern Ireland'', page 85. Queen's University of Belfast, 1996, )Flanagan, Deirdre & Laurence: ''Irish Place Names'', page 202. Gill & Macmillan Ltd., 2002. is a small village in County Londond ...

Mossley Mossley (/ˈmɒzli/) is a town and civil parish in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, in the upper River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame Valley and the foothills of the Pennines, south-east of Oldham and east of Manchester. The town grew ...

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England, United Kingdom *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area ...

, Strabane Athletic, UUJ and Wellington Rec. ''Match played on 23 September 2017'' * Ards Rangers 9–0 Iveagh United

Second round

The twelve members of the

join the competition at this stage as well as the first-round winners, and the winners and byes from Round 2A. ''Matches were played on 30 September 2017'' * 18th Newtownabbey Old Boys 1–2 UUJ *

Annagh United Annagh United Football Club (The name 'Annagh' ) is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club playing in the NIFL Championship. The club, founded in 1963, hails from Portadown and plays its home matches at the BMG Arena. The club home c ...

4–2 Markethill Swifts *

2–6 Dundela * Armagh City 2–0 Coagh United * Ballywalter Recreation 6–3 Ballynure Old Boys * Bryansburn Rangers 3–4 Albert Foundry * Colin Valley 1–4 Valley Rangers * Cookstown Youth 6–7 Craigavon City * Crumlin Star 5–0 Oxford United Stars * Crumlin United 2–0

Donegal Celtic Donegal Celtic Football & Social Club is an intermediate football and social club based in Belfast, Northern Ireland who currently play in the Ballymena & Provincial Football League. The club, founded in 1970, plays its home matches at Donegal ...

* Derriaghy Cricket Club 1–2 Shankill United * Downshire Young Men 1–10

Moyola Park Moyola Park is a country estate near Castledawson, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It was formerly the home of Lady Moyola and Lord Moyola, former Prime Minister of Northern Ireland. The estate is and is home to Moyola Park Golf ...

* Dromara Village 0–1 Banbridge Town * Drumaness Mills 0–2

1–2

Portstewart Portstewart () is a small seaside town in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 7,854 people in the 2021 United Kingdom census. It is a seaside resort, neighbouring both Coleraine in County Londonderry and Portrush in Cou ...

* Dunmurry Rec. 0–7 Tobermore United * Glebe Rangers 3–0 Rosemount Recreation * Immaculata 2–1 Larne Tech Old Boys *

1–2 Ards Rangers * Killyleagh YC 2–0

* Laurelvale 5–2 Tullyvallen * Maiden City 7–1 Lurgan Town *

3–1 Strabane Athletic * Newington 0–3

Lisburn Distillery Lisburn Distillery Football Club is a Northern Irish intermediate football club who are based in Ballyskeagh, Lisburn. A founder member of the Irish League, they currently play in the NIFL Premier Intermediate League, the third tier of the Nor ...

* Newtowne 4–2

* Portaferry Rovers 2–0

* Queen's University 7–2 Dungiven Celtic * Rathfriland Rangers 4–1 Orangefield Old Boys * Rosario YC 4–0 Brantwood * Sport & Leisure Swifts 2–0 Windmill Stars * St Patrick's YM 3–2 Wellington Recreation * Tandragee Rovers 3–2 Lisburn Rangers

Third round

''Matches were played on 4 November 2017'' * Armagh City 1–2 Crumlin Star * Ballywalter Recreation 3–2 Ards Rangers * Banbridge Town 1–2 Queen's University * Craigavon City 1–4 Albert Foundry * Crumlin United 2–0 Valley Rangers * Glebe Rangers v UUJ (''Glebe Rangers received a bye'')Twitter.com @gleberangersfc, 2 November 2017 *

2–3 Shankill United * Immaculata 3–1 Brantwood (aet) * Killyleagh YC 3–1 Tobermore United * Laurelvale 0–5

3–0 Rathfriland Rangers * Newtowne 0–2

2–1 Portaferry Rovers * Sport & Leisure Swifts 0–2 Dundela * St Patrick's Young Men 2–5

* Tandragee Rovers 1–2 Maiden City (aet)

Fourth round

''Matches were played on 2 December 2017'' * Crumlin United 2–4 Immaculata * Dundela 5–0

* Glebe Rangers 2–1

3–1 Albert Foundry *

2–0 Ballywalter Recreation *

1–1 Maiden City (''Maiden City won 3–1 on pens'') * Queen's University 3–1 Killyleagh YC * Shankill United 0–4 Crumlin Star

Fifth round

''Matches were played on 6 January 2018''

Sixth round

''Matches were played on 3 February 2018''

Quarter-finals

''Matches were due to be played on 3 March 2018 but only the Glenavon/Loughgall fixture was completed on this date. The three remaining fixtures were played on 13 March 2018.''

Semi-finals

''Matches were played on 31 March 2018. Cliftonville played Loughgall at

the Oval The Oval, currently named for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club sinc ...

, and Coleraine played Larne at Ballymena Showgrounds.''

Final

The final was played on 5 May 2018 at the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park.

References

External links

Official site

nifootball.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:2017-18 Irish Cup Irish Cup seasons

Cup A cup is an open-top vessel (container) used to hold liquids for drinking, typically with a flattened hemispherical shape, and often with a capacity of about . Cups may be made of pottery (including porcelain), glass, metal, wood, stone, pol ...