FAI CUP FINAL 2026 COUNTDOWN: One final push in pursuit of the biggest prize

My first recollection of Waterford in an FAI Cup final 40 years ago evokes memories of a goal that graced the stage of a Blue Riband showdown.

Unfortunately, Noel Synnott’s textbook header to the top corner was directed into his own net.

As a nine-year old standing on the Dalymount Park terraces that Sunday afternoon in 1986, I wondered how a player could perfect the technique of a towering header for an own-goal.

I’ve met Noel on a couple of occasions since and it was heartening to discover he’s dealt with the blunder through his customary humour.

He had no choice, really, due to the ribbing he’s taken from his teammates.

That was the first final Waterford reached since their 1980 triumph and the Cup has been a source of heartache since Shamrock Rovers won 2-0 in the middle part of their three-in-row.

Many of those woes I’ve been privy to and felt the pain of the locals despite being a born and bred Dublin. The affinity stems from living in the city as a student between 1996-2000 rather than the fact that on that 1986 Blues team was my father-in-law Tony Macken.

It was two years after graduating from Waterford Institute of Technology (as it was upgraded to in my first year) that I had the privilege of meeting his daughter Fiona.

The only Waterford link to that chance encounter was the fact that the two pals accompanying me on the pre-World Cup final night in 2002 around Dublin City were college buddies from Tramore.

During my time on campus, the temptation to skip the afternoon bus home on the Cork Road was activated on a few occasions to watch the Blues at the nearby RSC.

It’s well I recall an FAI Cup highlight in February 1997 when Donal Golden’s goal dumped Rovers out.

On a bitterly cold evening, with just one stand in-situ, streams of fans huddled together around the perimeter in a desperate attempt to counter the conditions. Not so much of the sunny south-east that night.

Another Baltic occasion came in 2003. Hopes were high of dethroning the champions Longford Town but that windswept afternoon was grim in many respects. The only final at Lansdowne Road in the modern era that didn’t reach the 10,000 attendance mark turned on a contentious refereeing decision to allow play to continue despite two balls being on the pitch.

Not only was Waterford’s lead scratched in dubious circumstances but the leveller came from one of their own, Alan Kirby. The late winner by Paul Keegan stung.

Sunday will be the first final for 22 years but the semi-final losses of recent recall add to that sense that a cursed Cup.

Marc Bircham’s siege mentality applied even before kick-off at Bohemians in 2021 when he questioned probity around the draw. His ire continued afterwards when disputing Georgie Kelly’s offside status as the striker prodded in the solitary goal with two minutes left.

Whereas Waterford were battling relegation that year, they were chasing promotion the following season when back in the last-four for a similar outcome.

Damien Duff pounded around the RSC running track at the conclusion, his celebrations from a 1-0 win tinged with relief at avoiding an upset.

Drogheda United’s first Cup triumph in 2024 ought to have taught the pessimists that strugglers can be contenders in the sole domestic competition available beyond what’s become a predictable title shake-up of the modern era.

Maybe it was fitting that Waterford ended their final famine at Dalymount, avenging the injustice of five years earlier. The only downer of the result was denying fan favourite, Alan Reynolds, a deserved day out on the biggest stage. His day will come.

For now, Waterford’s city and, hopefully, county will decamp on Sunday to the capital in pursuit of the prize – with a byproduct on offer of a European return following a 40-year wait.

With Pádraig Amond and Tommy Lonergan up front, perhaps a header at the right end will make the difference.

Graham Coughlan won’t be the only Dub to rejoice in that scenario.