The 2011–12 Irish Cup (known as the JJB Sports Irish Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 132nd edition of the Irish Cup, Northern Ireland's premier football knock-out cup competition.. The competition began on 17 September 2011 with the first round and ended on 5 May 2012 with the final.
All 30 clubs from IFA Championship 1 and 2 entered the competition at this stage, as well as the 10 lower league clubs that had progressed through the previous rounds. The games were played on 10 and 17 December 2011.
The draw for the Fifth Round was made on 14 December 2011. All 12 clubs from the IFA Premiership entered at this stage, along with the 20 winners from the fourth round matches. The games were played on 14 January 2012. Replays were played on 24 January 2012.
†Ballymena United were later ejected from the competition for fielding an ineligible player in this match. Newry City were consequently reinstated.[5]Ballymena United appealed the decision, but the appeal was rejected.[6]
The semi-final draw was made on 3 March 2012. Both ties were due to be played on 31 March 2012. However, Ballymena United's appeal over their disqualification delayed Linfield's semi-final match until 14 April 2012. Newry City were confirmed as their opponents when Ballymena's appeal was rejected.
