Toals Steel & Sons Cup final: Newington FC v Linfield Swifts (tomorrow, Seaview, 10.45am)
NEWINGTON captain Richard Gowdy has urged his team-mates to "do themselves justice" in tomorrow’s Steel & Sons Cup final showdown with Linfield Swifts and to come away with "no regrets".
Remarkably, it will be the third time in four years Newington and Linfield Swifts have met each other in a Steel final.
Newington edged the 2017 decider at Seaview, thanks to Padraig Scollay’s second-half strike – the club’s first-ever Steel Cup victory – before the Swifts gained revenge two years later, winning a compelling final 3-1.
Gowdy is one of two Newington players – the other being Conall Burns – who will feature in their third Steel Cup final for the club.
“It’s mad when you think about the teams that compete in the Steel & Sons and we’re playing Linfield Swifts for the third time in the final,” said Gowdy.
“One thing you’re guaranteed when you play Linfield Swifts is quality. You don’t get to play for them if you’re not a good footballer.
“In 2017, we were a team that never knew when we were beaten. We were a tough, dogged side and that got us over the line.
“In 2019, you could probably argue we had a better starting XI, but you look at that Linfield team in that final: Dale Taylor went to Nottingham Forest, Charlie Allen went to Leeds United and Trai Hume is in the Linfield first team and there’s talk of him going across the water.
“You have to hold your hands up and say that was a really good Linfield side in 2019, but we definitely had chances in that final.”
Shorn of several first team regulars, Newington pulled out all the stops to overcome north Belfast neighbours Crumlin Star in a fourth round clash that needed extra-time before going on to record a comfortable 4-1 win over Belfast Celtic in the quarter-finals.
Arguably, their best performance of their Steel & Sons run came in the semi-finals when they over-powered an experienced Bangor side 5-3 after extra-time.
Linfield needed a penalty shoot-out to see off 1st Bangor in a third round clash and edged out Glentoran II after extra-time in the quarter-finals before posting a comprehensive 3-0 semi-final win over Lisburn Distillery.
Davy Dorrian, one of the affable faces of local football, is still at the helm with the Swifts, while Newington’s Conor Crossan has moved into the backroom team and are now being led by ex-midfielder Paul Hamilton.
Gowdy ranks this current Newington team as the best he’s played on but also acknowledges their lack of Steel Cup final experience.
“It’s not easy because it’s the only time you’ll play football on Christmas Day,” said the Newington skipper, who also plays Gaelic football for O’Donovan Rossa.
“I would say to the players, live it. Steel & Sons Cup finals are rare – it mightn’t seem that way because a couple of us are playing in our third final in four years. I know it’s a cliché but I think players who haven’t played in a final like this must approach it like it’s just another game because if you don’t and you let it get to you, you’ll have regrets.
“It can sap the energy from you. It’s about doing yourself justice and actually showing that you are a good player. I let myself down in 2019. That feeling is horrible.
“But if you can walk away with having no regrets - win, lose or draw – then you can be content because there is no more you can give. I walked away with a hell of a lot of regrets after the 2019 final, it still eats away at me and it’s the same with the Intermediate Cup final loss in the same season.”
He added: “I definitely believe this is the best Newington team I’ve been a part of. What sums us up as a club is that there are no d***heads, no egos, everyone works their b***s off. That’s what the management demands. That’s what we demand of each other.
“We have quality too and we can game-manage situations well, so hopefully that’s something we might have over Linfield in this final.”
PATHS TO FINAL
Newington
Round One: Killyleagh 1 Newington 3
Round Two: Mossley FC 2 Newington 5
Round Three: Newington 2 Derriaghy CC 0
Round Four: Crumlin Star 0 Newington 1 (aet)
Quarter-final: Belfast Celtic 1 Newington 4
Semi-final: Newington 5 Bangor 3 (aet)
Linfield Swifts
Round One: Bye
Round Two: Linfield Swifts 6 Wakehurst 0
Round Three: Linfield Swifts 2 1st Bangor 2 (Linfield won on penalties)
Round Four: Linfield Swifts 4 Malachians 1
Quarter-final: Linfield Swifts 3 Glentoran II 2 (aet)
Semi-final: Linfield Swifts 3 Lisburn Distillery 0
