2015 FAI Cup
Football tournament season
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The 2015 FAI Senior Challenge Cup, also known as the 2015 FAI Irish Daily Mail Senior Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 95th season of the national football competition of the Republic of Ireland. The winners of the competition earned a spot in the first qualifying round of the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League.
A total of 40 teams competed in the 2015 competition, which commenced in March 2015. The teams entered from the 2015 League of Ireland Premier Division and First Division received byes into the second round stage. Four non-league clubs also received byes to the second round. The remaining 12 teams entered at the first round stage. These non-league teams are composed of the sixteen clubs, which reached the fourth round of the 2014–15 FAI Intermediate Cup, and the semi-finalists of the FAI Junior Cup in 2014–15.[1]
Dundalk won the cup after a 1–0 win against Cork City in the final on 8 November.[2]
Teams
| Round | Clubs remaining | Clubs involved | Winners from previous round | New entries this round | Leagues entering at this round |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First round | 40 | 16 | N/A | 16 | Leinster Senior League Munster Senior League Ulster Senior League |
| Second round | 32 | 32 | 8 | 24 | League of Ireland |
| Third round | 16 | 16 | 16 | none | none |
| Quarter-finals | 8 | 8 | 8 | none | none |
| Semi-Finals | 4 | 4 | 4 | none | none |
| Final | 2 | 2 | 2 | none | none |
First round
The draw for the First Round of the FAI Cup was made on 7 April 2015 at Abbotstown by FAI President Tony Fitzgerald and Brendan Clarke. 20 intermediate and junior clubs were present in the draw.[3]
| 24 April | St. Mary's A.F.C. | 0–1 | Avondale United | |
| 19:30 | Report | Roy Long  (pen.) |
| 25 April | College Corinthians A.F.C. | 0–1 | Crumlin United | |
| 14:00 | Report |
| 25 April | Cobh Wanderers FC | 2–0 | Clonmel Celtic | |
| 14:30 | Report |
| 25 April | Cockhill Celtic F.C. | 1–0 | Casement Celtic | |
| 17:00 | Report |
| 26 April | Killester United | 3–0 | Dunboyne AFC | |
| 14:30 | Report |
| 26 April | St. Mochta's | 5–2 | Arklow Town | |
| 11:00 | Report |
Second round
The draw for the Second Round of the FAI Cup was made on 6 May 2015 at the Aviva Stadium by Paul McGrath and FAI President Tony Fitzgerald and contained 32 teams, with the 20 League of Ireland teams entering the competition. Ties played on the weekend ending 31 May 2015.[4][5]
| 29 May | Tolka Rovers | 2–1 | Waterford United | Frank Cooke Park, Dublin |
| Report |
| 29 May | Dundalk F.C. | 5–0 | Shelbourne F.C. | Oriel Park |
| Report |
| 29 May | Wexford Youths | 0–2 | Cork City F.C. | Ferrycarrig Park |
| Report |
| 29 May | Galway United F.C. | 1–0 | North End United | Terryland Park |
| Report |
| 29 May | Drogheda United F.C. | 3–1 | Cabinteely F.C. | United Park |
| Report |
| 29 May | Bohemian F.C. | 4–1 | Firhouse Clover | Dalymount Park |
| Report |
| 29 May | Bray Wanderers | 3–1 | Limerick F.C. | Carlisle Grounds |
| Report |
| 30 May | Killester United | 3–0 | Cobh Ramblers | Hadden Park |
| Report |
| 31 May | Sligo Rovers | 2–0 | Crumlin United F.C. | The Showgrounds |
| Report |
| 31 May | University College Dublin | 1–3 | Sheriff Y.C. | Belfield Bowl |
| Report |
| 31 May | Cobh Wanderers FC | 3-3 | Avondale United | Oldchurch Park/Avondale Park |
| Report Report |
| 31 May | Edenderry Town F.C. | 0–3 | Derry City F.C. | Father Paul Park |
| Report |
Third round
The draw for the third round took place in Sligo on 17 July and was made by Republic of Ireland manager Martin O'Neill and FAI president Tony Fitzgerald. Fixtures were played on the weekend of August 23.[6]
| 21 August | Tolka Rovers | 0–4 | Killester United | Frank Cooke Park |
| Report |
| 21 August | Galway United F.C. | 1–4 | Dundalk F.C. | Eamonn Deacy Park |
| Report | Attendance: 761 Referee: Robert Rogers |
| 21 August | Derry City F.C. | 3–0 | Drogheda United F.C. | The Brandywell |
| Report |
| 21 August | Sheriff Y.C. | 2-2 | Athlone Town F.C. | Clontarf Astro/Athlone Town Stadium |
| Report Report |
| 21 August | Bohemian F.C. | 0–1 | Bray Wanderers | Dalymount Park |
| Report |
| 22 August | Cobh Wanderers FC | 0–4 | Sligo Rovers | Oldchurch Park |
| Report |
| 21 August | Cork City F.C. | 4–0 | Saint Patrick's Athletic | Turners Cross |
| Report | Attendance: 1,748 Referee: Paul McLaughlin |
Quarter-final
The draw for the quarter-finals of the Irish Daily Mail FAI Cup were made on 23 August with Irish under 21 manager Noel King and FAI Director of Competitions Fran Gavin overseeing proceedings.[7][8] Ties were played on Friday 11 September. The draw featured 6 League of Ireland Premier Division teams and 2 non-league sides.
Semi finals
The draw was made by former Republic of Ireland international Keith Fahey, who was a member of the St Patrick’s Athletic team that won the trophy in 2014, and Fran Gavin, Director of Competitions at the Football Association of Ireland. The draw was broadcast live on RTE Radio One’s Morning Ireland programme and also on RTE News Now. On Friday 2 October Dundalk defeated Longford Town 2 - 0.[9] Cork City defeated Bray Wanderers 1-0 on Sunday 4 October. The match was broadcast live on RTÉ2.[10]
| 2 October | Dundalk F.C. | 2–0 | Longford Town F.C. | Oriel Park |
| Report |
| 4 October | Bray Wanderers | 0–1 | Cork City F.C. | Carlisle Grounds |
| Report |
Final
| 8 November 2015 | Dundalk | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Cork City | Aviva Stadium |
| 15:30 | Richie Towell 107' |
Report | Attendance: 25,103 Referee: David McKeon |