Referee Christopher Morrison gets the action under way at an expectant Windsor Park.

The national stadium pitch has borne the brunt of some criticism in some quarters this season, but the ground staff has worked hard to produce a decent surface ahead of back-to-back semi-finals tonight and tomorrow.

Paul Leeman
Former Glentoran captain on BBC Sport NI

They are very evenly matched both sides.

It is a massive occasion for both and I think it is going to be a very close encounter.

Cliftonville make three changes from the side which lost 2-0 at Larne in last weekend's league game.

Rory Hale returns from suspension while Reds boss Jim Magilton strengthens his defensive options by drafting in Shaun Leppard and Luke Conlan.

Conor Pepper, Ryan Curran and Aidan Kelly drop to the bench, where they are joined by Keevan Hawthorne and Joe Sheridan following their return from under-age international duty with Northern Ireland.

Dungannon boss Rodney McAree also makes a trio of changes from his side's defeat at the hands of Coleraine a week ago.

Declan Dunne, the hero of last season's penalty shootout success in the cup final, returns in goal, while there are also recalls for Leo Alves and Cahal McGinty.

They replace Alex Henderson, Caolan Marron and Mal Smith, who are listed among the substitutes for the Swifts.

Cliftonville: Morrison, Toole, Leppard, Addis, Conlan, Glynn, Wilson, J Kelly, Hale, McStravick, Healy.

Subs: Ridd, Pepper, Curran, Gormley, A Kelly, Hawthorne, Sheridan.

Dungannon Swifts: Dunne, Gordon, McGinty, Wallace, Glenny, Kelly, Doyle, Bigirimana, Dillon, Alves, Moore.

Subs: Henderson, Maguire, Marron, Knowles, Smith, Mitchell, McAllister.

Image source, bb

Dungannon Swifts boss Rodney McAree said it is "going to be extremely difficult" for his side to progress past Cliftonville in their Irish Cup semi-final.

The holders meet the Reds at Windsor Park on Friday in a game that will be live on BBC iPlayer in a repeat of last year's final which the Swifts won on penalties to clinch the Irish Cup for the first time.

With Larne or Coleraine to come in the decider if they get there, McAree knows his side face a tough task to retain the trophy, but he wants a big performance against Cliftonville to keep Swifts fans dreaming of the making that a possibility.

"If you don't win a semi-final you don't have those memories [of winning a final]," he told BBC Sport NI.

Image source, Press Eye

Dungannon Swifts and Cliftonville had relatively straightforward fifth round ties as they swept aside Ards and Dundela respectively without conceding a goal.

In the sixth round, the Reds and Swifts beat the mid-Ulster duo, Glenavon and Portadown, respectively by two goals to one.

Keevan Hawthorne, Shaun Leppard and Liam McStravick were all on the scoresheet as Cliftonville swept past Loughgall in the quarter-finals, who they also beat on their way to winning the competition in 2024.

McAree's Swifts kept their cup defence alive as they also eased past Championship opposition in the shape of H&W Welders thanks to goals from Steven Scott, Cahal McGinty and Kobei Moore.

Image source, Inpho

Dungannon Swifts wrote a new chapter in the history books at Stangmore Park last season when they lifted the Irish Cup for the very first time.

The Swifts erased their penalty shootout agony from 2007's showpiece final against Linfield as they overcame Cliftonville on spot kicks to seal a famous victory for the County Tyrone side.

Rodney McAree's side showed their mettle to keep going despite Shea Kearney cancelling out John McGovern's first-half header and having to play for over an hour with 10 men after Steven Scott's dismissal.

The Reds' relationship with the Irish Cup has been a love/hate one. Jim Magilton's side ended 45 years of hurt with a 3-1 win over Linfield in the 2024 final, then came out second best last year, and now have the opportunity to reach the decider for a third season in a row.

The 2024 final will live long in the memory of the Solitude faithful especially after Ronan Hale's iconic second goal in extra time, when he ran two-thirds of the pitch to fire into an empty goal.

After winning the cup seven times between 1883 and 1909 Cliftonville had to wait another 70 years for that legendary 3-2 win over Portadown in 1979.

Image source, Inpho

One point currently separates Dungannon Swifts and Cliftonville in the Irish Premiership table with Rodney McAree's side coming out on top in two of their previous three meetings so far this season.

A last-minute penalty from Adam Glenny sealed all three points for the Swifts in their last meeting six weeks ago.

It's all or nothing for the four remaining teams in the Irish Cup this weekend as they battle it out for a place in May's showpiece final.

Cup holders Dungannon Swifts, Cliftonville, Larne and Coleraine are the last ones standing in this season's competition with two mouth-watering semi-final ties up for decision.

Not only is the glory of winning a major piece of silverware at stake but a place in the qualifying rounds of the Conference League is also up for grabs for the eventual winners.

Windsor Park will host both last-four games - on Friday night and Saturday afternoon - with bumper crowds expected to be in attendance.

Read here all you need to know about the ties.

Image source, Inpho

Watch highlights as Dungannon Swifts win the Irish Cup for the first time by beating Cliftonville 4-3 in a penalty shootout after the final at Windsor Park ended 1-1 after extra-time.

Read the match report here.

A reminder of the Irish Cup action ahead this weekend.

Image source, BBC Sport

Hello and welcome to our live text commentary of tonight's Irish Cup semi-final between Cliftonville and Dungannon Swifts.

It's a meeting of last year's finalists with holders the Swifts aiming to reach back-to-back finals and retain the cup for the first time.

Jim Magilton's side will aim to get revenge tonight after their penalty shootout heartbreak last May.

As well as live text and in-play clips, we will have a stream of tonight's game on the BBC iPlayer and app with a report, highlights and reaction to follow.

Thanks for joining us. Enjoy the game!