BIG GUNS KEPT APART IN BANK OF IRELAND SENIOR CUP

Anyone hoping to see two of the North West’s “Big 3” clashing in this season’s senior cup decider couldn’t have hand-picked a better quarter-final line-up as Brigade, Coleraine and Donemana weren’t just kept apart in Monday afternoon’s draw, but the trio even got home advantage as well.

Not that they’ve got things all their own way of course because the Bannsiders will be facing last year’s beaten finalists, Eglinton, who are more than capable of serving it up to their hosts. The villagers were very impressive in seeing off Muckamore in the Irish Senior Cup recently and Stuart Thompson’s men will be fired up for another tilt at a final.

Brigade gave Drummond a bit of a pasting in the first match of the season and Chris Moore would hardly have chosen a trip back to Beechgrove quite so soon after. Despite that of course the cup is a one-off; however it is difficult to see past Andy Britton’s team.

Donemana have been paired with Newbuildings- the sole Championship survivor- and Ricky-Lee Dougherty will know that this is a real banana skin. Despite the home side’s illustrious cup pedigree, Dale Culbert’s men love nothing more than a scrap and with Peat Salmon around, the holders need to approach this one very carefully.

Tie of the round could be the game at Magheramason where Bready meet Strabane. Neither side has started the season on fire but both have shown glimpses of quality and home advantage for David Scanlon’s men levels this right up.

It has all the makings of a proper cup tie with the respective performances of Rankin, Wallace and Austin against Gillespie, Gillespie and Pretorius possibly dictating the outcome.

The quarter final draw in full is-

Bready v Strabane; Donemana v Newbuildings; Brigade v Drummond; Coleraine v Eglinton. Ties to be played Saturday 4 June.