'It would mean everything to win it' - Cliftonville fan Sean Stewart well aware of how important Irish Cup success is to the club

Stewart watched on in 2018 as the Reds lost out 3-1 to Coleraine at Windsor Park, but having joined the Solitude outfit for this season on-loan from Norwich City, Stewart will swap the stands for the pitch this afternoon.

His stay at Cliftonville could barely have got off to a better start, scoring just 22 minutes into his Premiership debut against Glenavon back in August and he has gone on to register 22 appearances across competitions in a first season in senior football.

"It has been unbelievable,” Stewart says of his time with Cliftonville. "It has been some season for the club with qualifying for Europe - that's the minimum for this club.

"The FA Cup in England may have lost its magic a bit, but every year here it's always about the Irish Cup, especially for Cliftonville - it's the Holy Grail. It would be an honour to be out there in the final and it would mean everything to win it.”

Stewart is part of a young core that have excelled under Jim Magilton this season with Shea Kearney, Odhran Casey, Ben Wilson and David Odumosu, who are all aged 23 or under, playing key roles in helping Cliftonville put together a Premiership title charge for long stretches of the campaign alongside reaching this showpiece decider against Linfield.

One of their most impressive performances of the season came with a semi-final victory over Larne – which was a first win against the league’s top-two this term – and they’ll now be hoping to tick off a maiden Blues triumph on the biggest stage.

"We were buzzing after the semi-final win,” added Stewart. “We've tried to mellow it down a bit after that as we don't want to get too carried away.

"I remember the skip said to me after the game that we've been here before and not to get too carried away. I've been trying to take his advice and not to blow it out of proportion really.

"You could see how important the fans were in the semi-final against Larne, that's probably what got us over the line. When we walked out the North Stand was nearly full, it was unbelievable."