This week, the County Antrim Shield semi-finals took place. While one match-up featured the two most trophy-laden teams in Northern Ireland as bitter rivals Linfield and Glentoran battled it out at Windsor Park in south Belfast, the other comprised Championship side and surprise package Dundela facing off against current Premiership table-toppers Larne when they clashed in east Belfast at the Duns’ Wilgar Park.
Linfield and Larne prevailed in those respective meetings, setting up a repeat of last year’s decider and presenting the Inver Reds with the chance of a three-peat. That said, this competition has generally been accepted as the fourth-string for clubs at the top level, and many within the game believe it is worth reforming. In some ways, the discourse has overshadowed the action on the pitch – and while the question of change is a worthy one, the Shield should not command disrespect.
On Tuesday night, David Healy’s Linfield set about atoning a humbling 0-3 home loss to the Glens in the Premiership last month. Thanks to Andrew Clarke’s goal in the first half and a Chris Shields spot-kick after the interval either side of James Singleton’s equaliser for the visitors, the Blues did just that, securing a 2-1 win and their final spot.
Mick McDermott has been one of the most outspoken voices on his feel of the need for adjustment. While he has took the team from The Oval to the County Antrim showpiece once since taking charge in 2019, witnessing his Glentoran side suffer defeat to Larne on penalties in 2021, he has never had a particularly high opinion of the tournament in its current format and has repeatedly called for alterations on how it is conducted.
When McDermott appeared as a studio guest on BBC Northern Ireland’s Irish League Show earlier this season, he proposed that a group stage format should replace the last-16 in respect of this 134-year-old calendar staple.
And prior to Tuesday’s trip to the National Stadium, McDermott reiterated such a belief to the Belfast Telegraph.
“It’s probably the least important of the domestic trophies on offer, there is no hiding the fact it’s the lesser of the four local competitions,” he said.
“If there were changes to it in the coming years, it could perhaps revitalise the competition a bit. The way it is at the minute, it’s quite stagnant.
“I think it would be good to encourage more young players to play in it, maybe make it compulsory to field three or four players under the age of 21. It’s a historic trophy, so it’s worth preserving.”
While McDermott, a figure who coached extensively in the Middle East and the United States prior to coming back home to take charge of the east Belfast men, has been vociferous in wanting to find a reason to make the competition more interesting for him and his side – and granted, his suggestions are novel – he is also right to appreciate the prestige.
The emotions of the 48-year-old Belfast native can be contrasted with his counterpart Tiernan Lynch and Larne.
When the Invermen reached their second County Antrim final in a row, facing Linfield at Seaview in January, there was utter, perhaps unfair, derision when the club released a song commemorating the occasion.
Tomás Cosgrove’s 77th-minute goal was enough to win it for the side who would eventually finish the term in 5th-place. The ex-Cliftonville right back’s headed effort ensures that, following a 0-3 win at Dundela in which Lynch’s line-up had a mix of usual starters and exciting youngsters, Larne will enter this season’s edition chasing three-in-a-row. If they retained their crown once more, it would be the first-ever time a non-Belfast team has kept this distinctively large trophy for three successive campaigns.
Perhaps the Inver Park outfit’s perspective is influenced by the fact that, at least prior to Kenny Bruce’s takeover in 2018, they are not used to hovering around these sorts of heights.
While a run of just one Irish Cup added to the cabinet in the past seven years is a barren stretch in Glentoran’s books, traditionally they are a club who has never been far from competing at the very top.
Larne have a decorated history at the intermediate level, but fighting about the Premiership summit for such a sustained spell as this? In 133 years of existence, if we are talking mountains, this is surely their Everest.
And it took them until only last year to qualify for their inaugural European excursion, after all.
Taking that into account, it must undeniably give supporters a great deal of pride. While Bruce has grand aspirations of fighting for a top-tier title the club has never won and the Champions League anthem hitherto never heard blaring pre-match around the ground, that is not to say the faithful does not appreciate these sorts of successes. A cup is a cup is a cup.
It must not get lost in the chatter and debate that this is still a tournament that deserves its due respect.
As for Dundela, this was a panel that a little over a year ago were left deflated and downbeat at the foot of the second-tier table. The campaign had barely got under way, however many still had them as certs for the drop after securing only a solitary point in eight matches.
Niall Currie inspired the Duns of east Belfast to fight at the top end of the table this time around after ultimately staving off the relegation threat with some comfort in 2021/22.
Following up on this successful crusade, the Portadown man helped them to this stage of the competition prior to returning to his hometown club for a second stint, with Paul Harbinson taking the reins as his successor.
While strikes from Paul O’Neill, Lee Bonis and Daniel Kearns put an end to their journey for this year, their mere presence is a mark of progress that will enlighten their fans in the same way as it will Larne, a bottom-half team in the second-tier as recently as four-and-a-half years ago.
In closing, while McDermott’s ideas have merit, it should not detract from the various other possible viewpoints of what the County Antrim Shield has to offer. Those who say it is an unnecessary inconvenience of the schedule, while entitled to their opinion, would do well to understand that its significance is far from lost in the eyes of others.
May this knockout festival continue to grace the fixture list for many years more.
Featured image from Andrew McCarroll/Pacemaker Press.
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