The 2017 FAI Senior Challenge Cup was the 97th season of the knockout national Football competition of the Republic of Ireland. The winners of this season's cup earned a place in the 2018–19 Europa League and would have entered in the first qualifying round.[1]
| FAI Irish Daily Mail Cup | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Country |  Republic of Ireland |
| Defending champions | Cork City |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Cork City (4th title) |
| Runner-up | Dundalk |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 40 |
| Goals scored | 133 (3.33 per match) |
Cork City were the defending champions and went on to retain the cup after a 5-3 win on penalties against Dundalk in the final on 5 November.[2][3]
The tournament began the weekend of 30 April 2017 with the preliminary round, which was contested by sixteen non-league clubs.[4]
Teams
| Round | Clubs remaining | Clubs involved | Winners from previous round | New entries this round | Leagues entering at this round |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preliminary round | 40 | 16 | N/A | 16 | Leinster Senior League Munster Senior League Best Western Southern Hotel Super League |
| First round | 32 | 32 | 8 | 24 | League of Ireland Leinster Senior League |
| Second 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 |
Preliminary round
The draw for the preliminary round was held 15 March 2017.[4]
| 30 April 2017 | Bangor Celtic | 3–2 (a.e.t.) | Cherry Orchard |
| 30 April 2017 | College Corinthians | 0–1 | Ballincollig A.F.C. |
| 30 April 2017 | Edenderry Town | 0–1 | Cobh Wanderers |
| 30 April 2017 | Evergreen | 2–2 (a.e.t.) (4–3 p) | St. Mary's |
| 30 April 2017 | Everton | 1–1 (a.e.t.) (5–3 p) | Liffey Wanderers |
| 30 April 2017 | Greystones United | 0–3 | Sheriff YC |
| 30 April 2017 | Killarney Celtic | 1–0 | Boyle Celtic |
First round
The first round was played between the eight first round winners, the four clubs which received byes in the preliminary round, and the twenty League of Ireland clubs.[5] The first round draw was held on 21 July 2017.[6]
| 11 August 2017 | Waterford | 0–3 | Shelbourne | Waterford |
Lyons  46'Doyle 78'English 89' | Stadium: Waterford Regional Sports Centre |
| 13 August 2017 | Bluebell United | 3–0 | Sheriff YC |
| 12 August 2017 | Cobh Ramblers | 0–3 | Limerick |
| 12 August 2017 | Longford Town | 4–2 (a.e.t.) | Sligo Rovers |
| 12 August 2017 | Bray Wanderers | 0–1 | Cork City |
| 13 August 2017 | Dundalk | 4–0 | Derry City | Dundalk |
| Mountney 1', 81' McMillan 51' (pen.)Duffy 90' | Stadium: Oriel Park |
| 13 August 2017 | Portmarnock | 0–2 | St Patrick's Athletic |
| 11 August 2017 | Wexford | 1–2 | Crumlin United |
| 11 August 2017 | Finn Harps | 4–3 | Bohemians |
| 11 August 2017 | Cabinteely | 3–1 | UCD |
| 11 August 2017 | Shamrock Rovers | 1–0 | Glenville |
| 12 August 2017 | Cobh Wanderers | 3–0 | Killarney Celtic |
| 12 August 2017 | Bangor Celtic | 3–2 | Everton |
| 12 August 2017 | Ballincollig A.F.C. | 0–5 | Athlone Town |
| 13 August 2017 | Evergreen | 0–4 | Drogheda United |
| 13 August 2017 | Killester United | 3–3 (a.e.t.) (6–7 p) | Galway United |
Second round
The second round draw was held on 14 August 2017.[7]
| 25 August 2017 | Shelbourne | 0–3 | Shamrock Rovers | |
| Report |
| 25 August 2017 | Bangor Celtic | 0–1 | Longford Town | |
| Report |
| 25 August 2017 | St Patrick's Athletic | 0–2 | Galway United | |
| Report |
| 25 August 2017 | Cork City | 7–0 | Athlone Town | |
| Report |
| 25 August 2017 | Bluebell United | 1–0 | Cabinteely | |
| Report |
| 25 August 2017 | Drogheda United | 5–1 | Cobh Wanderers | |
| Report |
| 26 August 2017 | Crumlin United | 1–3 | Dundalk | |
| Report |
| 26 August 2017 | Limerick | 1–0 | Finn Harps | |
| Report |
Quarter–finals
The quarter-finals draw was held on 28 August 2017.[8]
| 8 September 2017 | Bluebell United | 2–4 | Shamrock Rovers | |
| Report |
| 8 September 2017 | Galway United | 1–2 | Limerick | |
| Report |
| 8 September 2017 | Dundalk | 4–0 | Drogheda United | |
| Report |
| 9 September 2017 | Longford Town | 1–4 | Cork City | |
| Report |
Semi–finals
The semi-finals draw was held on 11 September 2017.[9]
| 1 October 2017 | Dundalk | 1–1 | Shamrock Rovers | |
| 16:45 | Report |
Replay
| 10 October 2017 | Shamrock Rovers | 2–4 (a.e.t.) | Dundalk | |
| Report |