Cliftonville players and staff should embrace 'pressure moments' as Reds are determined to keep hands on Irish Cup trophy: Jim Magilton
Cliftonville manager Jim Magilton says his squad are arguably more determined to retain the Irish Cup trophy than feeling the pressure of trying to banish their hoodoo in the competition this time last year.
The Reds ended their 45-year wait to lift the famous trophy last May when they sealed a 3-1 extra-time win over Linfield at Windsor Park.
Nearly a year on, Magilton's boys are one match away from reaching the showpiece decider yet again as they meet Championship side Ards at Windsor Park this evening.
When asked if the experiences of last year – including winning the BetMcLean Cup earlier this month – will stand his players in good stead for the last-four clash, Magilton said: "As players and staff, pressure is something that you want and you want to be put under that spotlight.
"These moments come to very few people but it’s been created by the players.
"Obviously being in Cup semi-finals and finals brings attention and pressure but the players want that as it means you’re competitive and at the business stage of competitions.
"The prize on offer is huge and you want to rise to the occasion. People always say you should play the game and not the occasion but I think you’ve got to also embrace the occasion rather than let it potentially demotivate you.
"The next game is always the most important and we are looking forward to a massive Irish Cup semi-final.”
Whilst Premiership side Cliftonville will be seen as favourites to progress by many – Magilton says Ards’ triumphs against fellow top-flight clubs Ballymena United and Loughgall so far in the competition will act as a reminder of the threat they pose.
“It is an Irish Cup semi-final, so no matter who the opponent is, it’s going to be a tough game,” he added.
"Ards have beaten two Premiership clubs to get to this stage so they certainly deserve to be here.
"They are winning games and have a spring in their step, so we know what to expect.
“We will approach this game the same as we did last year when we played Larne in the semi-final.
"We want to get to another Irish Cup final and semi-finals are all about winning.”
Does ending the wait to win the trophy make things easier for Cliftonville this time around?
"The hoodoo was there before I and some fabulous managers before me took the job,” he explained.
"The full focus of everyone at the club was winning it last year and it’s the same this year.
"We had such a journey to being successful in the Irish Cup last year by playing Coleraine, Loughgall, Portadown, Larne and Linfield but we managed to operate it.
"We are obviously looking to defend if this year, and if I’m honest, we are probably more determined to repeat our success than what we felt last year when we hadn’t won it for so long.
"There is probably a less expectation on the long wait now but we’ve had some difficult encounters to get to this stage, for example, the Crusaders tie could have went either way.”