Paul Heatley hoping to lead Crusaders on another European adventure with Irish Cup final success

The Crues have been a consistent Northern Irish representative in Europe, qualifying for either the UEFA Champions League, Europa League or Conference League 10 times in the past 12 years, including this season where they were beaten 3-1 on aggregate over two legs by 20-time Swiss champions and current semi-finalists Basel.

In recent campaigns they have picked up wins over the likes of B36 Tórshavn (Faroe Islands) and F.C. Bruno's Magpies (Gibraltar) but haven’t made it past the second qualifying round of any competition.

Retaining their Irish Cup crown at Windsor Park would give them another chance to thrive on a European stage without going through the rigours of a play-off.

"Every player who plays in the Irish League, especially in the top six knows about Europe,” he said. "It's something that every player wants to play in at any level.

"A few of us have been very blessed to achieve this and the gaffer has been to the most countries in Europe by now.

"It's a great experience, it's an opportunity and a platform to challenge yourself individually and as a group to see how developed you've become and how far you can push yourself on a European stage.

"It's so important for any club to achieve and it's no different for us.

"The gaffer sets the standards for everybody across the board and Europe is certainly on the list.

"We will do everything we can to make sure we achieve that for next season.”

Heatley has been one of the most consistent – and impressive – Irish League performers of his generation, scoring double-figure Danske Bank Premiership goals in every season since 2013/14.

The 35-year-old is showing no signs of slowing down and his experience could be crucial this weekend with three league titles and two Irish Cup crowns already secured during a glittering career.

"When it comes to cup finals, it doesn't really matter about the performance, it's all about the result,” he added. "It's quite similar to the league at the end of the day.

"As the gaffer says, a massive credit to the two teams for getting to the final.

"To get to one cup final is fantastic but to go and repeat that this season when you know you're going to be a target in that competition is even more impressive.

"It's been really good for both teams and it sets up a really interesting final.

"Past performances and everything like that goes out the window.

"It's 90 minutes of football and we know what we have to do to get the right result.

"I'm sure Ballymena will be focused as well but we will give it everything we have and make sure we are confident and well prepared.”

The occasion of a showpiece decider can sometimes get to a player and affect their performance levels, but Heatley isn’t expecting to feel any additional nerves when he and his teammates walk out in front of what should be a healthy crowd.

"It's probably down to the individual,” he said. "On a personal note, the nerves might be more calm this time.

"Other players who maybe haven't been in the game as long might feel the nerves.

"The beauty of this experience is that it's so quick after last year.

"Last year we probably felt the nerves as a group so hopefully this will be a really good learning curve regardless of the result.

"It'll develop players to getting used to the big occasions as the squad continues to grow and age.

"The manager will have us well drilled so nothing around nerves or concerns plays a part in that.

"At the end of the day, it's a Cup final that we've deserved to get to and we'll embrace it.”

They will have to find a route to glory without influential captain Billy Joe Burns, who was shown a straight red card in a recent league fixture against Larne for throwing the ball at Shaun Want, and former Northern Ireland youth international Ben Kennedy.

Kennedy – a talented midfielder with English Football League experience – has only been able to make two league appearances for the Seaview outfit this term after a sparkling season in 2021/22, where he netted 12 Premiership goals, due to injury.

Philip Lowry will be one of the biggest influences on the outcome with the 33-year-old enjoying the best goal return of his career, scoring 21 times this season and was nominated for Premiership Player of the Year – an award which was won by Larne midfielder Leroy Millar.

"Ben's had a very unfortunate time right from the offset,” added Heatley. “He's (Lowry) been a stand out as always and is solid as a rock.

"We've had a tough time with injuries and suspension this season, which means it's been hot and cold because of that.

"I think based on how we do in the final, we will reflect on a season which I think has been relatively successful.

"The development of the league has been incredible, the top three are now full-time which poses challenges the other teams have to come up against to cope with that.

"I think massive credit must be given to the club, players and staff as we've done well based on that.”