Dean Shiels cites 'togetherness' as a key factor in Dungannon's cup comeback

The Swifts looked like being a top flight casualty as Anto Burns gave the Championship side the lead, but just when it looked like Breda would pull off a famous scalp, they would concede a penalty a minute before time which was coolly dispatched by James Knowles.

In a cruel twist for the hosts, they would lose the game with virtually the last kick of the ball as Steven Scott picked out Padraig Lynch who made no mistake to set-up a quarter-final clash away to Cliftonville.

"The conditions were tough, the pitch was awful, but it's just about getting through,” Shiels told Dungannon Swifts media channel.

"It wasn't pretty, there was a lot of slack passing and complacency, and I wasn't happy with a lot of the players' performances.

"However, we got the job done.

"We showed character and stuck together when it looked like it wasn't going to happen for us.

"That's maybe a sign of the spirit that's been building in the group in the last two or three months.

"There is togetherness there and there is that spirit needed.

"We've taken knocks through the season but the players have stuck together and you saw that out there.

"They didn't drop as they kept going and going and going.”

Shiels acknowledged he was impressed by the desire shown by the hosts but was pleased to see his players roll up their sleeves and play on a difficult pitch.

The Swifts announced this week that 18-year-old Lynch had signed professional forms with the club and made it a memorable few days as he netted the late winner.

"We could have felt sorry for ourselves,” he continued.

"I think sometimes when you come to these places you notice the desire other teams have and it was great to see.

"Knockbreda players gave everything for the club and the badge and I told our players that if we dropped our standards, then we would get punished.

"It showed out there at times despite preparing for the game and trying to work out a pattern of play and how we can hurt them.

"That goes out the window when you arrive here and see the pitch in the condition that it is, added to the strong wind.

"We got the ball wide into a lot of areas but it was just that cross or shot that lacked any quality in the final third.

"We freshened things up, it gave us a little bit of life and we finally got it done.

"It's about taking responsibility in key moments.

"When Steven Scott gets the ball, he's not looking to pass it off to a team-mate or the nearest man.

"He takes responsibility and drives forward and then he has the quality to produce a pass through which was what we were missing.

"Padraig is a great prospect, he's scored so many goals for the U20's and he gets into the areas where there's going to be chances and he usually delivers.”