2015–16 Irish Cup

June 2021 Irish Cup 2015–16 Northern Ireland 129 Glenavon (7th win) Linfield 127 553 2014–15 2016–17 The 2015–16 Irish Cup (known as the Tennent's Irish Cup for sponsorship purposes) was the 136th edition of the Irish Cup, the premier knockout cup competition in Northern Irish football since its introduction in 1881. The competition began on 18 August 2015 with the first round and concluded with the final at Windsor Park on 7 May 2016. The cup was sponsored by Tennent's Lager, the competition's first title sponsor since 2012.http://www.irishfa.com/domestic/item/10202/ifa-unveils-tennents-as-new-sponsor-of-irish-cup/ IFA unveils Tennent's as new sponsor of Irish Cup Irish Football Association irishfa.com 11 December 2015 30 January 2016 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20160127074727/http://www.irishfa.com/domestic/item/10202/ifa-unveils-tennents-as-new-sponsor-of-irish-cup/ 27 January 2016 Glentoran were the defending champions, after they lifted the cup for the second time in three seasons and for the 22nd time overall by defeating Portadown 1–0 in the 2015 final.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/32568117 Irish Cup final: Glentoran 1-0 Portadown BBC Sport 2 May 2015 2 May 2015 Their defence of the Cup ended in the sixth round after falling to a 4–1 home defeat against 2013–14 winners, Glenavon. Glenavon who were the eventual winners after beating Linfield 2-0 in the final, qualified for the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round Format and schedule 129 clubs entered this season's competition, an increase of four clubs compared with the 2014–15 total of 125 clubs. 82 regional league clubs from tiers 4–7 in the Northern Ireland football league system entered the competition in the first round, with a further seven clubs receiving byes to proceed directly into the second round as necessitated by the number of participants. These clubs contested the first three rounds, with the 12 surviving clubs joining the 28 NIFL Championship clubs in the fourth round. The 12 NIFL Premiership clubs enter the competition in the fifth round, along with the 20 winners from the fourth round matches. All ties level after 90 minutes used extra time to determine the winner, with a penalty shoot-out to follow if necessary. RoundDraw dateFirst match dateFixturesClubs First round 22 July 2015 18 August 2015 41 129 → 88 Second round 25 August 2015 3 October 2015 24 88 → 64 Third round 13 October 2015 7 November 2015 12 64 → 52 Fourth round 10 November 2015 5 December 2015 20 52 → 32 Fifth round 8 December 2015 9 January 2016 16 32 → 16 Sixth round 9 January 2016 6 February 2016 8 16 → 8 Quarter-finals 6 February 2016 5 March 2016 4 8 → 4 Semi-finals 5 March 2016 1 April 2016 2 4 → 2 Final 7 May 2016 1 2 → 1 TiersLeaguesNo. of EntriesEntry round1NIFL Premiership12Fifth round2NIFL Championship 128Fourth round3NIFL Championship 24Ballymena & Provincial Football League Premier DivisionMid-Ulster Football League Intermediate ANorthern Amateur Football League Premier DivisionNorthern Ireland Intermediate League89First round(Second round if byed)5Mid-Ulster Football League Intermediate BNorthern Amateur Football League Division 1A6Northern Amateur Football League Division 1B7Northern Amateur Football League Division 1C Results Note: The league tier of each club at the time of entering the competition is listed in parentheses. First round The draw for the first round was made on 22 July 2015 with the matches played between 18 and 22 August 2015. Seven clubs received byes into the second round, namely: Downpatrick (4), Dunmurry Recreation (5), Groomsport (7), Larne Tech Old Boys (5), Oxford United Stars (4), Rathfriland Rangers (5) and Seagoe (5).https://www.irishfa.com/domestic/irish-cup/ Domestic - Irish Cup Irish Football Association 15 August 2015 Note: All entrants at this stage were at regional level (tiers 4–7). |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|18 August 2015 Newcastle (6) 3–2 Ballynahinch Olympic (6) |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|20 August 2015 Drumaness Mills (4) 1–4 Dunloy (4) |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|21 August 2015 Ballynure Old Boys (4) 1–2 Sirocco Works (6) |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|22 August 2015 Abbey Villa (5) 4–1 UUJ (6) Ardstraw (4) 1–5 Newry City (4) Ballynahinch United (6) 2–4 Valley Rangers (4) Ballywalter Recreation (6) 4–2 Iveagh United (7) Bloomfield (6) 1–4 Desertmartin (4) Chimney Corner (4) 3–3 (aet)(3–4 p) Downshire Young Men (7) Comber Recreation (5) 3–0 Windmill Stars (5) Craigavon City (5) 3–4 Lower Maze (4) Crumlin Star (4) 3–0 Shorts (7) Crumlin United (4) 3–2 Nortel (4) Derriaghy Cricket Club (4) 4–1 Orangefield Old Boys (5) Donard Hospital (6) 2–4 Shankill United (4) Dromara Village (5) 2–1 Colin Valley (6) Dromore Amateurs (7) 0–3 Lisburn Rangers (5) Dundonald (5) 3–2 Broomhill (4) Dungiven Celtic (4) 1–5 Newtowne (4) Dunmurry Young Men (7) 8–1 Laurelvale (5) East Belfast (5) 1–2 Ards Rangers (4) Fivemiletown United (4) 2–3 St Mary's (4) Grove United (6) 0–1 Malachians (4) Hanover (4) 5–1 Ballymoney United (4) Immaculata (4) 2–1 1st Bangor Old Boys (5) Killyleagh Youth (5) 3–2 Bryansburn Rangers (7) Lurgan Town (5) 0–1 Wellington Recreation (6) Magherafelt Sky Blues (4) 1–2 Brantwood (4) Moneyslane (5) 2–1 Barn United (5) Mossley (7) 1–3 18th Newtownabbey Old Boys (7) Newbuildings United (4) 2–3 Crewe United (4) Oxford Sunnyside (5) 2–7 Rosario YC (6) Portaferry Rovers (6) 0–3 Banbridge Rangers (4) Rathcoole (4) 3–2 Ballymacash Rangers (4) Rathfern Rangers (6) 4–2 Richhill (5) Saintfield United (7) 1–2 Ardglass (4) Seapatrick (4) 1–0 Killymoon Rangers (4) St Patrick's Young Men (5) 2–1 Markethill Swifts (5) Strabane Athletic (4) 11–0 Kilmore Recreation (4) Tandragee Rovers (4) 1–0 Albert Foundry (4) Trojans (4) 2–1 Islandmagee (4) |} Source: irishfa.com Second round 48 clubs competed in the second round; the 41 winners from the first round matches, along with the seven clubs that received byes. The draw took place on 25 August 2015, with the matches played on 3 October 2015. Note: All entrants at this stage were at regional level (tiers 4–7). 18th Newtownabbey Old Boys (7) 1–3 Abbey Villa (5) Ardglass (4) 3–1 Killyleagh Youth (5) Ards Rangers (4) 4–1 Strabane Athletic (4) Ballywalter Recreation (6) 0–4 Tandragee Rovers (4) Banbridge Rangers (4) 2–0 Seapatrick (4) Brantwood (4) 2–3 Sirocco Works (6) Crumlin Star (4) 2–1 Newry City (4) Crumlin United (4) 9–1 Seagoe (5) Derriaghy Cricket Club (4) 1–6 Trojans (4) Desertmartin (4) 1–2 Lisburn Rangers (5) Downshire Young Men (7) 4–2 Moneyslane (5) Dromara Village (5) 2–1 Newcastle (6) Dunloy (4) 2–10 Dundonald (5) Dunmurry Recreation (5) 5–3 Hanover (4) Groomsport (7) 1–4 Newtowne (4) Immaculata (4) 10–0 Dunmurry Young Men (7) Larne Tech Old Boys (5) 2–2 (aet)(4–5 p) Oxford United Stars (4) Malachians (4) 0–1 Comber Recreation (5) Rathcoole (4) 1–2 Lower Maze (4) Rathfriland Rangers (5) 1–0 Crewe United (4) St Mary's (4) 3–1 Downpatrick (4) St Patrick's Young Men (5) 4–1 Shankill United (4) Valley Rangers (4) 3–1 Rathfern Rangers (6) Wellington Recreation (6) 2–1 Rosario YC (6) |} Source: irishfa.com Third round The 24 winners from the second round entered this round. The draw took place on 13 October 2015, with the fixtures played on 7 November 2015. As the only tier 7 club remaining, Downshire Young Men were the lowest-ranked side to reach this stage of the competition, but were ultimately knocked out after a narrow 3–2 defeat to Crumlin United. Note: All entrants at this stage were at regional level (tiers 4–7). Abbey Villa (5) 1–1 (aet)(4–2 p) Dunmurry Recreation (5) Ards Rangers (4) 4–1 St Mary's (4) Comber Recreation (5) 3–4 Ardglass (4) Crumlin Star (4) 5–0 Dundonald (5) Downshire Young Men (7) 2–3 Crumlin United (4) Immaculata (4) 4–2 Lower Maze (4) Lisburn Rangers (5) 3–0 Tandragee Rovers (4) Newtowne (4) 3–2 Dromara Village (5) Oxford United Stars (4) 1–0 St Patrick's Young Men (5) Rathfriland Rangers (5) 4–2 Sirocco Works (6) Trojans (4) 5–1 Banbridge Rangers (4) Valley Rangers (4) 0–2 Wellington Recreation (6) |} Source: irishfa.com Fourth round The fourth round draw was completed on 10 November 2015, with the matches completed between 5 December 2015 and 2 January 2016. The 28 NIFL Championship clubs entered the competition at this stage, and were joined by the 12 third round winners. As the only tier 6 club remaining, Wellington Recreation were the lowest-ranked side to reach this stage of the competition, but they were eliminated by Harland & Wolff Welders. Note: Intermediate clubs entered the competition at this stage (tiers 2–3). |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|5 December 2015 Annagh United (2) 2–1 Dollingstown (3) Ards (2) 7–0 Donegal Celtic (2) Ards Rangers (4) 2–3 Oxford United Stars (4) Armagh City (2) 3–0 Lisburn Rangers (5) Ballyclare Comrades (2) 0–1 Crumlin Star (4) Banbridge Town (3) 3–3 (aet)(3–2 p) Crumlin United (4) Dundela (3) 0–2 Immaculata (4) Harland & Wolff Welders (2) 3–2 Wellington Recreation (6) Loughgall (2) 2–1 Trojans (4) Lurgan Celtic (2) 4–0 Ardglass (4) Newington YC (3) 1–2 (aet) PSNI (3) Queen's University (3) 1–2 Tobermore United (3) Wakehurst (3) 1–1 (aet)(3–2 p) Glebe Rangers (3) |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|8 December 2015 Bangor (2) 5–0 Coagh United (3) |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|9 December 2015 Institute (2) 1–1 (aet)(5–4 p) Newtowne (4) |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|19 December 2015 Dergview (2) 1–6 Sport & Leisure Swifts (3) Larne (2) 2–0 Limavady United (3) Lisburn Distillery (2) 2–3 (aet) Knockbreda (2) Portstewart (3) 3–1 Moyola Park (3) |- |colspan="3" style="background:#E8FFD8;"|2 January 2016 Abbey Villa (5) 0–4 Rathfriland Rangers (5) |} Fifth round The fifth round draw took place on 8 December 2015, with the matches completed on 9 and 19 January 2016. The 20 winners from the fourth round matches joined the 12 NIFL Premiership clubs to make up the final 32 clubs. As the sole remaining club from tier 5, Rathfriland Rangers were the lowest ranked side to reach the fifth round, but were eliminated by Crusaders. Note: Senior clubs entered the competition at this stage (tier 1). eeeeee 9 January 2016 13:30 GMT Banbridge Town (3) 0–2 BBC Sport Carrick Rangers (1) Chines 4Kelly 53 Crystal Park, Banbridge 9 January 2016 13:30 GMT Crumlin Star (4) 3–2 BBC Sport Oxford United Stars (4) Murphy 60 67Brown 89 Curran 72 79 The Cliff, Larne eeeeee 9 January 2016 13:30 GMT Harland & Wolff Welders (2) 1–4 BBC Sport Glenavon (1) Davidson 66 Hall 20Bradley 63 81Cooper 90+1 Tillysburn Park, Belfast 9 January 2016 13:30 GMT Loughgall (2) 5–2 BBC Sport Larne (2) Walsh 16Mullan 22 44Rea 28Ryan 53 Robinson 15Keke 57 Lakeview Park, Loughgall eeeeee 9 January 2016 13:30 GMT Lurgan Celtic (2) 2–1 BBC Sport Bangor (2) Barton 19Haire 65 Walsh 58 Knockrammer Park, Lurgan 9 January 2016 13:30 GMT Sport & Leisure Swifts (3) 3–2 yes BBC Sport Institute (2) Glenholmes 52Gallagher 90+3Lynch 108 pen. Friel 25 pen.Harkin 43 pen. Glen Road Heights, Belfast eeeeee 9 January 2016 13:30 GMT Tobermore United (3) 0–2 BBC Sport PSNI (3) Agnew 20Anderson 65 Fortwilliam Park, Tobermore 9 January 2016 15:00 GMT Armagh City (2) 2–2 yes 4–1 BBC Sport Portstewart (3) Lavery 6Campbell 13 Bradley 67McClements 74 Holm Park, Armagh eeeeee 9 January 2016 15:00 GMT Cliftonville (1) 2–0 BBC Sport Immaculata (4) Knowles 65Curran 75 Solitude, Belfast 9 January 2016 15:00 GMT Coleraine (1) 2–2 yes 4–2 BBC Sport Ballinamallard United (1) Douglas 85Harkin 90+3 Campbell 16Lecky 33 The Showgrounds, Coleraine eeeeee 9 January 2016 15:00 GMT Crusaders (1) 3–0 BBC Sport Rathfriland Rangers (5) O'Carroll 33Owens 48Forsythe 60 Seaview, Belfast 9 January 2016 15:00 GMT Dungannon Swifts (1) 4–3 BBC Sport Warrenpoint Town (1) Teggart 24Mitchell 31 71Mullan 38 M Hughes 59Murray 85McMurray 90+2 Stangmore Park, Dungannon eeeeee 9 January 2016 15:00 GMT Linfield (1) 2–1 yes BBC Sport Ballymena United (1) Waterworth 47Bates114 Thompson 64 Windsor Park, Belfast 9 January 2016 15:00 GMT Portadown (1) 6–1 BBC Sport Wakehurst (3) McAllister 15 22 57Casement 42Mouncey 51Parker 83 Loughlin 90 Shamrock Park, Portadown eeeeee 19 January 2016 19:45 GMT Annagh United (2) 1–5 BBC Sport Knockbreda (2) McCordick 3 Wilson 16 40Johnston 36Beggs 61 77 Tandragee Road, Portadown 19 January 2016 19:45 GMT Glentoran (1) 4–1 BBC Sport Ards (2) Lavery 19 24 90+2Magee 46 Gage 44 The Oval, Belfast Sixth round The sixth round draw was made on 9 January 2016, with the matches played on 6 and 15 February 2016. The 16 winners from the fifth round matches entered this round. As the only representative from outside the Northern Ireland Football League, Crumlin Star were the lowest-ranked club to reach this stage of the competition, but they were eliminated after a narrow 1–0 defeat against Carrick Rangers. eeeeee 6 February 2016 13:30 GMT Loughgall (2) 2–0 BBC Sport PSNI (3) Mullen 31 58 pen. Lakeview Park, Loughgall 6 February 2016 13:30 GMT Lurgan Celtic (2) 1–0 BBC Sport Knockbreda (2) Haire 79 Knockrammer Park, Lurgan eeeeee 6 February 2016 15:00 GMT Cliftonville (1) 4–0 BBC Sport Sport & Leisure Swifts (3) J.Donnelly 7 9 86 pen.Catney 79 Solitude, Belfast 6 February 2016 15:00 GMT Dungannon Swifts (1) 1–3 BBC Sport Crusaders (1) Burke 29 Mitchell 11Carvill 38Wilson 59 o.g. Stangmore Park, Dungannon eeeeee 6 February 2016 15:00 GMT Glentoran (1) 1–4 BBC Sport Glenavon (1) Lindsay 88 o.g. Marshall 10Martyn 17Bradley 54Cooper 90+2 The Oval, Belfast 6 February 2016 15:00 GMT Linfield (1) 7–0 BBC SportReport Armagh City (2) Waterworth 10 27 62 65Burns 46 75Fallon 87 Windsor Park, Belfast eeeeee 6 February 2016 15:00 GMT Portadown (1) 3–1 BBC Sport Coleraine (1) Oman 31Twigg 60 pen.Lowry 87 McLaughlin 43 Shamrock Park, Portadown 15 February 2016 19:45 GMT Carrick Rangers (1) 1–0 BBC Sport Crumlin Star (4) Chines 63 pen. Seaview, Belfast Quarter-finals The 8 winners of the sixth round matches entered the quarter-finals. The draw took place on 6 February 2016, with the matches played on 5 March 2016. As the only two representatives from outside the NIFL Premiership, second tier sides Loughgall and Lurgan Celtic were the lowest-ranked clubs to reach the quarter-finals. It was Lurgan Celtic's first ever appearance in the quarter-finals. Most notably, this round of matches saw Ronnie McFall's reign as Portadown manager come to an end after 29 years. Appointed in December 1986, he was at the time the longest-serving manager in European football, and resigned after his side's shock 3–2 home defeat against Lurgan Celtic.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/35735792 Ronnie McFall: Europe's longest-serving boss resigns after 29 years BBC Sport 5 March 2016 5 March 2016 eeeeee 5 March 2016 15:00 GMT Crusaders (1) 3–0 BBC Sport Carrick Rangers (1) Heatley 16 52O'Carroll 33 Seaview, Belfast Raymond Crangle 5 March 2016 15:00 GMT Cliftonville (1) 0–3 BBC Sport Linfield (1) Gaynor 56 90 pen.Waterworth 76 Solitude, Belfast Andrew Davey eeeeee 5 March 2016 15:00 GMT Glenavon (1) 2–1 BBC Sport Loughgall (2) O'Brien 40McGrory 66 pen. Mallon 67 Mourneview Park, Lurgan Arnold Hunter 5 March 2016 15:00 GMT Portadown (1) 2–3 BBC Sport Lurgan Celtic (2) Soares 58Mackle 70 Haire 13Conaty 54Fitzpatrick 90 pen. Shamrock Park, Portadown Raymond Hetherington Semi-finals The 4 quarter-final winners entered the semi-finals, with the matches played at Windsor Park on 1 and 2 April 2016. The dates for the matches were switched after the draw, following a request from the PSNI.https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/35825887 Irish Cup: Date switch for Windsor Park semi-finals BBC Sport 16 March 2016 16 March 2016 As the only representative from outside the NIFL Premiership remaining, second tier side Lurgan Celtic were the lowest-ranked club to reach the semi-finals. It was their first ever appearance in the semi-finals, but they were eliminated by Linfield. 1 April 2016 19:45 BST (GMT+1) Glenavon (1) 4–3 Report Crusaders (1) Braniff 27 43 53 72 Snoddy 24 28Heatley 47 Windsor Park, Belfast 2 April 2016 15:00 BST (GMT+1) Linfield (1) 3–0 Report Lurgan Celtic (2) Burns 60 80 90+2 pen. Windsor Park, Belfast Final The final was played on 7 May 2016 at Windsor Park. Linfield appeared in the final for a record 62nd time, the seventh time in eleven seasons, and the first time since winning a third consecutive cup in the 2012 final. Glenavon reached the final for the second time in three seasons after winning the cup in 2013–14. It was only the fourth ever meeting between the two sides in the final, and the first since the 1992 final when Glenavon defeated Linfield 2–1 at the Oval to win the cup for the fourth time. History would repeat itself as Glenavon went on to beat Linfield 2-0 to win the cup for the seventh time and the second time in three seasons 7 May 2016 14:30 BST (GMT+1) Glenavon (1) 2–0 Report Linfield (1) Braniff 45Hall 48 Windsor Park, Belfast 11,500 Raymond Heatherington https://refereesfifa.blogspot.com/2016/05/northern-ireland-2016-irish-cup-final.html FIFA Referees News: Northern Ireland : 2016 Irish Cup Final May 7, 2016 References External links Official site nifootball.co.uk Category:Irish Cup seasons Cup