Championship club Ards confirm Irish Cup appeal has been rejected with Institute to face Linfield in quarter-final

Championship side Ards have confirmed that their appeal in relation to an Irish Cup sixth round defeat against Institute has been rejected by the IFA Appeals Committee, which means Kevin Deery’s outfit will face Linfield on Sunday, March 3.
By Johnny Morton
Published 22nd Feb 2024, 09:28 BST
Ards' appeal centered around Oisin Devlin's involvement in the match. PIC: INPHO/Stephen HamiltonArds' appeal centered around Oisin Devlin's involvement in the match. PIC: INPHO/Stephen Hamilton
Ards' appeal centered around Oisin Devlin's involvement in the match. PIC: INPHO/Stephen Hamilton

Ards’ protest was in relation to Oisin Devlin becoming a late addition to the substitutes' bench after originally being omitted from the teamsheet – the teenager came on at half-time as Institute won 1-0 thanks to Mikhail Kennedy’s early goal – but when the Irish FA Challenge Cup Committee unanimously dismissed it, the north Down club opted to appeal the decision.

However, on Wednesday evening they posted on X: “We are disappointed to report that the IFA Appeals Committee has rejected our appeal in relation to our Irish Cup Sixth Round game.”

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The Irish Cup quarter-finals will be spread across three different days with the action kicking off on Friday, March 1 with Cliftonville’s trip to face Portadown at Shamrock Park after that tie was selected for live stream coverage by BBC Sport NI (kick-off 7:45pm).

On Saturday, there will be two more fixtures with Glentoran at home to Ballyclare Comrades and Larne versus Newington before Linfield’s trip to the Brandywell on Sunday afternoon.

With the match initially scheduled to take place on Saturday, concerns were raised due to the fact Derry GAA are playing Dublin on the same day at 5pm at nearby Celtic Park, which is located less than half a mile away.

Playing the game on the Friday night was also ruled out due to Derry City facing St Patrick’s Athletic in the League of Ireland.

It means Linfield will now play on two consecutive Sunday’s with their last-eight Irish Cup clash followed by a BetMcLean Cup final showdown against Portadown at Windsor Park.

Related topics:Linfield